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Sports

Mira Costa Boys Lacrosse Breezes Past Culver City

First-half scoring barrage by Nick de la Espriella paces Mustangs in the 14-0 win.

It took a mere 15 seconds for the Centaurs of Culver City High to find out what Mira Costa High players have known for some time: Nick de la Espriella has a vicious shot.

The senior midfielder scored immediately after the opening faceoff with a laser-like goal, and it did not take him long to find the back of the net again. De la Espriella scored a second goal at the 10:08 mark in the first quarter as the Mustangs' lanky midfielder lead the way to a comfortable 14-0 victory Monday in the Bay League match.

"Nick has as hard a shot as you will find, and he's very accurate too," Mira Costa coach David Vinci said.

The first half was played almost entirely on the Culver City side of the field as a fierce offensive attack resulted in 12 goals. Attackers Mitchell Hymowitz and Ryan Silver scored on back-to-back possessions after de la Espriella's opening goals. The Mustangs continued to control the ball and work within the offense as attacker Dakota Randall scored on back-to-back goals with Hymowitz assisting on both to end the first quarter up 6-0.

"We did some things well. We controlled the ball, and when you control the ball defensively, it makes things easy," Vinci said.

De la Espriella and fellow midfielder Austin Hafdell scored goals in a man-up situation as the offensive onslaught continued in the second quarter. The Mustangs won virtually every first half faceoff and worked the ball around well. Midfielder Tom Farrell keyed the attack with superb passing, leading the team with five assists. The first half finished the way it had started with a blistering goal from de la Espriella. 

Although de la Espriella would score on all four of his shots, the scoring was spread out with Hymowitz and Randall each contributing three goals. Randall, a sophomore, was playing his second game back after a hip injury.

"It's great to have Dakota out there," Vinci said. "He's certainly one of our best attackers, and it's good he's getting his reps again." 

Repetitions were abundant Monday as every Mira Costa player saw action in the victory. "I'm excited for the new guys. Everyone got in, they played hard and our reserve goalie, Jon Mayfield, made a great save to preserve the shutout," Vinci said.

The victory over Culver City brought the Mustangs (9-2, 7-1 in the Bay League) to within one-half game of conference leading Palos Verdes.

The Mustangs have won three in a row and all four of their home games this season, and the upcoming schedule sets up well. Mira Costa will play two of its next three matches at home, including an April 21 tilt against Palos Verdes, which defeated the Mustangs 8-5 earlier this season. Mira Costa next plays Wednesday in a Bay League match against Beverly Hills.

"We get to play a few more at home the rest of the way, and it will be important for us to improve and for everyone to understand their roles and be patient,'' Vinci said.

''After a timeout early on, we started getting a better rhythm with the offense, and we need to keep focusing on ball control.''

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