Newport upended

NEWPORT BEACH — When the Newport Harbor High boys’ tennis team played Woodbridge in a nonleague match April 14, the Sailors left with a loss, but had gained some confidence against a good team.

The Sailors matched up once again against the Warriors in the second round of the CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs and were coming off a huge upset win at Dana Hills Wednesday.

But things didn’t go so well for the Sailors as all three of their singles players were outplayed by Woodbridge’s players and were unable to win a point for Newport Harbor.

The Sailors’ playoff run ended as they lost, 12-6, to the Warriors (17-2), who finished the regular season ranked No. 10 in the CIF Division I coaches’ poll. The Tars end their season at 12-7.

Newport Harbor junior Jason Cernius and sophomore Troy Arnold, who won the Sunset League doubles title, swept at No. 1 doubles.

Cernius and Arnold beat James Lafond and Colby Trinh, 6-2. They beat Maurice Chau and Masato Nakamiya, 7-6. The Newport Harbor duo battled Chau and Nakamiya in an exciting match that went back and forth, but Cernius and Arnold edged the Woodbridge tandem.

The Sailors’ No. 1 doubles team had no trouble winning its final doubles set, as it scored a 6-2 win over Kristian St. John and Connor Lipscomb.

“We knew that they were a good team, and we had to come out hard,” Cernius said.

The sweep had Arnold feeling confident about their chances in the CIF individual tournament.

Arnold added that he thinks the team will go far in the CIF individuals.

The Sailors’ No. 2 doubles team of Clay Friend and Chad Morabito won two of its three matches. Friend and Morabito beat Ian Kaplan and Alex Koreeda, 6-0, and defeated Lafond and Trinh, 6-3.

Sailors Coach Kristen Case said her team had a lot of confidence going into the match after upsetting Dana Hills Wednesday.

“We were confident ready to fight; we knew what was ahead of us,” Case said.

Case added that against a team like Woodbridge there was no room for error.

Warriors Coach Ric Barth was happy they advanced to the quarterfinals.

“We had played Harbor before, and we knew that we could match up in singles with them,” Barth said.

Barth’s singles players swept the Sailors players as they looked confident on the court.

“Our singles are all strong, they’re all ranked players, and they knew what they were coming into,” Barth said.

The Warriors will face Santa Barbara in the quarterfinals.