The Bottom Line

It has been said before - thoughts based on optimism mind you --

but in 1999, it appears to be real: the race for the Sunset League

football championship looks like a wide-open affair.

For the past five years, the league’s top spot has either belonged

to Los Alamitos High or Esperanza, with each of the other four teams -

Huntington Beach, Edison, Marina, and Fountain Valley - giving chase,

desperately trying to figure out a way to crash the party.

Only one of those four teams, Marina, has beaten one of those two

frontrunners (Los Alamitos in 1997), while others (Edison, Fountain

Valley) have come close to doing the same, only to come away with

frustration.

But in the ’99 season, all of that may change, because the reality

is is that balance may have arrived within the Sunset circles.

Sure, both Los Alamitos and Esperanza each have the talent to be

considered serious challengers once again, but the talent pool at both

schools isn’t as deep as it has been in the past. Throw into the mix some

great rushing attacks and strong defensive units at the other four

schools, and you finally have the potential for a wacky Sunset League

race.

‘This is a great time of the season, where optimism runs high and

everyone starts over with a clean slate,’ Marina Coach Mark Rehling said.

‘I really think this could be one of the better league races.’

So agrees Edison Coach Dave White, whose Chargers battle Rehling’s

Vikings in one of three Sunset League openers on tap Friday night.

‘There’s no bad team in this league,’ White said of a six-team

Sunset configuration that has posted an overall nonleague record of

22-7-1 and features two unbeaten teams, Edison and Los Alamitos. ‘Once

league play rolls around, the intensity level goes up a notch and really,

this year out of all the recent years, this is as close as its been

between the teams, from one down through six.’

In addition to the Edison-Marina matchup, Fountain Valley will

entertain Huntington Beach while those two bullies, Los Alamitos and

Esperanza, go head-to-head at Valencia High in Placentia.

Let the chase begin.