The Pipeline

Sunday, February 15, 2026

LJ b wrestling: Kressin wins title at CIF Division 4 Finals

Liam Kressin of La Jolla, at 144 pounds, records

a fall in 3:34 over Sergio Lucero-Avila (left)

in a second-round match. The senior

won his weight division at the CIF Division 4

Finals at Mar Vista High Sat.. Feb 14.

(Photos by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Senior Liam Kressin, capping two years of reaching the Masters tourney, won the title in his 144-pound class at the CIF Division 4 Finals by scoring a major decision over Jackson Kowalski of Mountain Empire, 14-5, Sat., Feb. 14.

Kressin, a lanky practitioner of his craft, achieved next week's Masters finals in part by taking a fall over Sergio Lucero-Avila of Valley Center in 3:34 in the second round, after a first-round bye.

He then decisioned Marcos Garcia of Holtville, 18-2, for a tech fall to reach the championship bout.

Kressin (on top) nears his 14-5 victory as

Coach Joey Stofko (right rear) shouts

instructions from the coaches' corner.

* * *

Fellow senior Dylan Haugum, returning for a successful season after being away from wrestling since his freshman year, placed second at 215 pounds. He dropped the championship bout by suffering a fall in 2:37 to Axel Gomez of Holtville.

Haugum, who sported a new "playoff haircut" in true football style (he starred for the Vikings football team on defense), comes on with a big burst of energy to begin matches. He first forced Jorge Padilla of Castle Park to default in 5:50 after a 7-5 lead in the first round.

Subsequent to a loss by pin in the second round, the energetic 12th-grader took Henry Sailor of High Tech North down for a fall in 3:28 to reach the title match.

215-pound Dylan Haugum (left) of the Vikings

kind of plays with opponent Gabe Cabrera

of Calipatria late in a 14-0 major decision

in the first round. Haugum qualified

for the Masters meet next week by placing

second in his weight division.

Saturday, February 14, 2026

LJ b wrestling @ CIF Division 4 finals - Mar Vista HS 1/14

Photos by Ed Piper

Noah Pace (122) wins by fall

in 32 seconds over Mateo

Tsujimoto (left, background)

of Sage Creek--partly to protect

a recovering left knee.

Big Dylan Haugum (left, 217 pounds) dominates

in his 14-0 decision over Gabe Cabrera (right)

of Calipatria. The two wrestlers tower over

referee Tiana Alanis (right rear), who competed

as a student at Bonita Vista at 103 pounds.

Friday, February 13, 2026

LJ g water polo: Game story 2/11

Junior Avery Edstrom (2) takes aim late in the

first quarter against Torrey Pines' Jazmyn Modir (4).

(Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

La Jolla's girls struggled with Torrey Pines in their CIF Open quarterfinal match Wednesday evening, Feb. 11, but as expected, Coach Tom Atwell's squad came out successfully in the end, winning 20-13.

The Falcons scored on a shot from center midway through the first quarter. The next time down the pool, the Vikings triple-teamed the post, and stole the ball. That solved one problem.

At the end of the period, however, Atwell was apoplectic at the La Jolla offense twice throwing the ball across the pool, from the 4-5 side, behind the player on the back row on the 1-2 side. The result in each instance was time killed on the 30-second shot clock for further offense, and the coach wasn't happy.

In another quarterfinal, Bishop's, the nation's sixth-ranked team, clobbered Cathedral Catholic, seeded eighth in the playoffs, 22-2. (The Vikings are ranked 16th in the U.S.) The Knights systematically dismantled the Dons and apparently are going to show no mercy in the playoffs, even when games are already securely in their possession.

La Jolla next plays Valhalla, the second seed, Tues., Feb. 17. The Knights face El Camino, which narrowly beat San Marcos, 9-8.

LJ g soccer: Bruner to train in Malaga

Senior Caroline Bruner, with her parents at

Senior Night Feb. 12. The defender is going to spend

an unusual "gap" year in training at the soccer

academy in Malaga, Granada, Spain next year

to prepare to play D1 soccer in the NCAA.

(Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

The Viking seniors were introduced with their families Thursday night, Feb. 12, at Senior Night in Edwards Stadium, and half of Coach Austin Mobley's varsity roster paraded across the field from the Viking tunnel at the southeast corner of the turf.

That means that next year, Mobley again has a rebuilding project--much as he did a year ago, when many 12th-graders from the rotation moved on to their futures, leaving many empty positions to fill.

La Jolla's latest rebuilding project has gone well, with the Vikings going through the Eastern League season without a loss or tie. As they enter the CIF playoffs Tues., Feb. 17, they are in good shape and expected to play well in the postseason competition.

Announced during the Senior Night festivities was the fact captain/defender Caroline Bruner, who has starred for Mobley on defense and whose role has been expanded to moving into the midfield when scoring opportunities might present themselves, plans to move to Malaga, Granada, Spain after graduation in May to train at the prestigious Malaga City Academy.

Malaga sits on the Mediterranean coast, directly south of Madrid, Spain's capital, several hundred miles away.

This resembles the plan a year ago of former Viking Tahlia Zadeyan, who planned for a year at a soccer academy in Spain, to develop and train for a scholarship position on the University of North Carolina, I believe.

What was stated in the intros Thursday was that Caroline "hopefully" will attract an NCAA Division 1 offer after her preparation in Malaga. This is a little different from Zadeyan's situation, where an athletic scholarship was understood to having already been proffered by UNC, if the year in Spain went well.

Tahlia would also seem to have more international exposure, having played for the Armenian National Team program in the juniors during high school. She's a midfielder.

Bruner focuses on defense, and that would seem to be her forte.

* * *

The FC Malaga City Academy operates in Almunecar, near Malaga, in southern Spain. UEFA-certified coaches help prepare a prospect to play at the professional level--in Caroline's case, at an NCAA Division 1 level.

The price is hefty: According to online sources, nine months for 24,550 Euros, approximately $29,146, considered a "full" academy season, and the cost goes down from there, pro-rated for the number of months.