Virgen: Newport Harbor happy about two more coach additions

Newport Harbor High created some big news with coach hirings within the past year including Rocky Ciarelli (boys’ volleyball), Aaron Peirsol (boys’ swim) and Ross Sinclair (boys’ water polo).

The Sailors added two more coaches to NHHS Athletics recently. They’re not as well-known in the community as the Big Three of Ciarelli, Peirsol and Sinclair, but they bring plenty to the table and they have helped make all the hirings very successful.

Carlos Alcazar (boys’ soccer) and Alex Goodman (girls’ basketball) were recently hired, giving their respective programs an added boost because both are teachers on campus. Alcazar, an Estancia High alum, teaches Spanish and Goodman is an English teacher.

“Great educators are perfect for high school coaching,” NHHS Principal Sean Boulton said.

Alcazar graduated from Estancia in 1991 and also coached the Aguilas as an assistant. He was varsity captain in his senior year and remembers John Ursini, now known for the restaurant Newport Rib Company, being the coach.

Before studying at UCLA, Alcazar coached at Estancia, working with the players who eventually went on to lead the Eagles to a CIF championship in 2000.

Alcazar takes over for Juan Mares, who is an assistant men’s soccer coach at Azusa Pacific University. He said he is grateful and excited to be coaching the Sailors.

“At Newport Harbor, I coached girls’ JV soccer about three years ago,” he said. “I had a mountain bike accident and broke my neck. It took two years to recover. I’ve always loved soccer. It’s my passion. Just to be able to still walk and talk, and still play soccer has been great. I felt this was a second chance to keep coaching.”

Goodman, 25, is in his first full year at Harbor. He hasn’t coached basketball before, yet he has always loved the game and is eager to show that with his new team, which includes returning standout McKenna Izzi.

“I have loved basketball my entire life,” said Goodman, who takes over for Shelly VanDusen. “My uncle got me a Little Tikes hoop when I was a kid and I’ve been playing or watching basketball since then. I started to think about coaching too after becoming a teacher. There are a lot of parallels there. There are two things I’m obsessed with: literature and basketball. If I can do those two things I am going to be pretty happy.”

Both coaches are aware they will be in the highly competitive Sunset League. They will do their best to prepare their players, yet because of their background they will stress the importance of academics.

That also makes Boulton and the rest of the administrators at Newport Harbor happy about the hirings.