Estancia

1996 RECORD: 7-3 overall, 2-3 in league COACH: John Liebengood (49-62-2 at school) RETURNING STARTERS: 5 on offense, 6 on defense TOP RETURNERS Mike Briano, RG/DE, 5-11, 215, Sr.; James Dawkins, RB, 6-1, 175, Sr.; Aaron Dew, DE, 5-11, 210, Sr.; German Diaz, FB/LB, 6-0, 195, Sr.; Andy Galicia, TE, 6-0, 195, Sr.; Tim Johnson, LT/DL, 6-5, 260, Sr.; John Liebengood, LG/DT, 6-3, 225, Sr.; Manu Tanielu, RB/CB, 6-1, 175, Jr.; Steve Wilson, TE, 6-2, 210, Sr. TOP NEWCOMERS Matt Barnard, TE, 6-3, 175, Sr.

Arthur Frommer , speaking at the Los Angeles Times Travel Show in February, predicted this travel trend for 2013: pot tours, particularly after Colorado and Washington state legalized small amounts of marijuana last November. Sure enough, the World Canabis Week , set for April, has already sold out. My 420 Tours (4/20 being a stoner holiday for reasons too complicated and murky to go into here) promised travelers coming to Denver that they would experience activities "100% legal under Colorado law. " The tour includes an airport pickup to a "420 friendly hotel" as well as sampling cannabis, happy hour parties, concert and admission to the High Times Cannabis Cup on April 20 and 21. About 200 people bought packages, some ranging from $499 for three days to $850 for five days.

Senior David Townsend scored one touchdown and threw for another Thursday night as unbeaten Woodbridge High School defeated Estancia, 26-0, in a nonleague game at Newport Harbor High. Townsend, who rushed for 80 yards in 15 carries, put Woodbridge (5-0) ahead, 7-0, when he scored on a five-yard run with 5:23 left in the first quarter. In the fourth quarter, Townsend took a handoff from quarterback Eric Brougher and threw a 79-yard touchdown pass to Derrick Odum, giving Woodbridge a 26-0 lead.

I visited Argentina in December and tried two good restaurants in Ushuaia, nicknamed the "End of the World City": La Estancia, for Argentine grilled meats including beef, lamb, pork, chicken and sausages with a good salad bar, and Chicho's, for seafood. After eating beef and lamb for several days, we found this restaurant was a welcome change. Try the local specialties, black hake and grilled trout. Both have fairly reasonable prices for this area, large portions, wines from Argentina and Chile, and good service.

Todd Marinovich will have to wait another week before his name is inscribed atop one list in the Orange County high school football record book. Needing 304 yards to become the county's all-time leading passer Friday night, the Capistrano Valley junior quarterback riddled the Estancia secondary for 221 yards before retiring to the sidelines early in a 34-0 romp at Newport Harbor High.

Tim O'Brien has left Tustin High School, where he was the basketball coach, to take the same job at Estancia, O'Brien said Thursday. O'Brien had a 35-16 record at Tustin in two seasons, including a 21-6 record last season. He replaces Joe Reid, who last month resigned for personal reasons after three seasons as coach. Estancia, which is in the Sea View League with Tustin, was 11-13 last season and 49-29 in three seasons under Reid.

Estancia scored on three consecutive first-half possessions and defeated Westminster, 20-7, Friday at Westminster. A 21-yard interception return by Fahad Jahid set up the game's first score. Jahid capped an eight-play drive with the one-yard run up the middle. A defensive stand by the Eagles (2-0) stopped Westminster on downs at the Estancia nine-yard line, and the Eagles drove 91 yards in 14 plays for their second score, a three-yard run by quarterback Jeremy Valdes.

In the first Orange County high school all-star golf match, sponsored by the Southern California Professional Golfers Assn., the South defeated the North, 16-8, at the Yorba Linda Country Club Thursday. In the fourth match, the South's Chris Lory of Estancia defeated Ken Wertzberger of Garden Grove by taking a lead of eight holes with seven holes to play. Other winners were Mike Joyner of Estancia, Jeff Tat of Corona del Mar and Byung Park of University for the South and Kevin Clayborn of Brea-Olinda, oon Lee of Sunny Hills and Trey Selman of Villa Park for the North.

Northwood High's first taste of the Pacific Coast League wasn't all bad. The first-year varsity Timberwolves won a measure of respect Thursday from Estancia. Only one problem. . . . "That's not what we're after," Coach Rick Curtis said. "We're after finishing the job." And gaining respect proved easier than finishing the job. Estancia was sluggish early, built a 20-point lead in the third quarter and hung on for a 41-36 victory over the Timberwolves.

Estancia running back James Dawkins got his senior season off to a fast start Thursday night, carrying the ball 21 times for 131 yards and three touchdowns in the Eagles' 35-6 nonleague victory over Century at Newport Harbor High. Dawkins scored twice on runs of 27 yards and on an 83-yard kickoff return. After Dawkins gave the Eagles (1-0) a 7-0 lead with just over a minute left in the first quarter, Dominick Meyers scored on a three-yard run with 1:07 left in the half for a 14-0 Estancia lead.

At times it's a curse, but whenever I hit the road, buried somewhere deep in my baggage is a big bundle of expectations. Take the Lodge at Torrey Pines, the only San Diego resort with AAA's five-diamond rating this year. I read accolades galore about its Arts and Crafts splendor, but the first time I walked into the underwhelming lobby, I wondered if one of those diamonds was really cubic zirconia.

Craig Fertig, an assistant coach on two national championship teams at USC, has been selected football coach at Costa Mesa Estancia High. Fertig, 60, a Newport Beach resident, has worked as an analyst on Fox Sports Net's coverage of USC football since 1992. He has not coached since leaving the head position at Oregon State, where he had an 8-36-1 record from 1976-79. Fertig played football at USC from 1962-64, starting at quarterback as a senior.

Micah Young, a senior forward at Costa Mesa Estancia High, was lost for the season last week after suffering a torn knee ligament. Young averaged 17.5 points and eight rebounds and shot 68% last season as a first-team All-Pacific Coast League selection.

Costa Mesa Estancia High has an opening in its 16-team boys' basketball tournament scheduled Dec. 26-29. A team from Canada pulled out because of travel concerns in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Information: (949) 515-6500, Ext. 2803.

The sky over Cordoba is bright enough to undo the visual integrity of solid things. Its light penetrates the contours of buildings, diminishes giant trees, even shrinks the mountains emblematic of this heartland province of Argentina. Only the church at Santa Catalina seems to have the earthly solidity to resist this force. Its Baroque towers rise over the small plaza in front, casting shadows as dark as the sky is bright.

Estancia and Costa Mesa, traditionally the fiercest of high school rivals, came together as one campus Monday, united in an outpouring of grief over the death of Costa Mesa football player Matt Colby. Colby attended classes at Estancia for three years before transferring to Costa Mesa earlier this year. Monday, Estancia students who knew Colby since childhood left their classes sobbing and drove in convoys across town to Costa Mesa High, where they joined his new teammates in the library.

7 TONIGHT FULLERTON HIGH This is a matchup between two physical teams that also have the skill guys to make this game entertaining. No one in Orange County has thrown as many touchdowns with as few interceptions as Fullerton's Michael Echaves, whose 17 scoring passes is the county's sixth-highest total and two interceptions is tied for the fewest among those with 100 attempts.

Marshall Hendricks scored four touchdowns and racked up 213 yards in 14 carries as Estancia routed Magnolia, 35-0, Friday night at Newport Harbor High. But his longest scoring run did not come while playing running back, but as a defensive back. In the second quarter, the senior transfer from Edison intercepted a pass from Magnolia quarterback Jacob Davis at the Estancia 25-yard line and ran it all the way back. Hendricks had two of Estancia's three interceptions.

Estancia's Jordan Hart pitched a complete game for the fourth time this season, defeating ninth-ranked Corona del Mar, 5-2, in a Sea View League baseball game Tuesday at Estancia. Hart (3-3) also singled in a run in the fifth, and Justin Lund had two hits and two RBIs for the Eagles (6-13, 3-7). Corona del Mar dropped to 14-7, 9-1. In another Sea View League game: University 18, Laguna Beach 14--Kevin Conlin slugged two home runs and had five RBIs for University, which had five team home runs.

Last year at this time, Estancia High was riding into the Southern Section playoffs as the top-seeded team in Division IV and one of most prolific scoring teams in Orange County history. Monday, Estancia Coach Steve Crenshaw had to call the section office to see if his fourth-place team would even get an at-large bid. By early afternoon, Crenshaw learned that the Eagles would be given a chance to defend their Division IV title.