The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly is sponsored by Bryson Financial.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009
The562’s coverage of aquatic sports in Long Beach is sponsored by the Aquatic Capital of America Foundation.
Wilson and Long Beach Poly were set to start their Moore League season off with a bang. The rivals faced off for the last game of the Moore League Girls’ Water Polo Showcase, where the Bruins dominated in the pool to take a decisive 19-3 win over the Jackrabbits.
“It’s definitely a big win for Long Beach, especially since it’s Moore League, like rivals and everything,” Wilson senior Katherine O’Dea said. “But I think it’s just like every other game in our season. It just helps us prepare for bigger games to come.”
Senior Angeliki Arroyo scored the first goal of the game for the Bruins before O’Dea made her grand return with five goals in the first quarter. K. O’Dea returned to Wilson after training with the senior National Team.
“Training with the best in the country helps me have a different experience when it comes to water polo,” K. O’Dea said. “Especially with the Olympic coach Adam Krikorian being there, giving us his insight and his feedback is super helpful and then [getting] such a big win here.”
Throughout the game, Wilson proved to be a solid and balanced team. Their defense was stopping almost any attack the Jackrabbits tried to make and their strong counter attacks helped elevate them in each quarter. To Head Coach Barry O’Dea, defense is what has helped his team maintain a 7-2 record this year.
“Defense is always going to lead offense,” B. O’Dea said. “We know we’re capable of scoring goals. We have some things that we still have to dial in defensively, but that is our emphasis, is defense first.”
While the Bruins’ defense was definitely strong, first-year Poly Head Coach Ali Landeros said his team needs to hesitate less when they have the ball.
“We definitely need to work on being aggressive on offense and really taking the opportunities to drive when we can,” Landeros said. “I think coming up against a team like Wilson that’s extremely talented, extremely hard working, it just kind of shows us that we need to move up in play level and not be shy.”
The Bruins scored six more goals in the second half, with goals from three different players. Junior Grace Walker and freshmen Bella Salley and Abby Billish had two goals apiece to account for this score.
“The idea that we have so many people scoring goals, it’s really a positive and a plus for us, because we don’t want it to be just about one person,” B. O’Dea said. “I think we’re kind of a hard team to prep for, because we can score from a lot of different places.”
Although Wilson seemed to be in complete control of the game, the Jackrabbits made sure to get some goals of their own in. Elizabeth Zabukovec and Sequoia Newman scored for Poly, making it 12-2 after the first half.
“When the girls actually stepped up to shoot those goals that we got, they were fully confident shots,” Landeros said. “They were up on their legs. There was no hesitation. There was no doubt.”
The Bruins seemed comfortable for the rest of the game, with Salley, Arroyo, Billish and O’Dea getting one more goal each in the second half. Frankie Garcia scored a goal in each of the last two quarters and Olivia Garcia chipped in a score to total up Wilson’s 19 goals.
Leslie Vargas scored the third goal for the Jackrabbits in the third quarter, as the Bruins shut them out in the final 11 minutes of play.
Landeros said despite the loss, he is still proud of his team’s improved performance against Wilson over recent years. Last season, the Jackrabbits lost 23-5 to the Bruins.
Landeros said the difference comes from his goalies’ hard work. Brooklyn Winterset and Citlalli Flores both spent some time in the net tonight.
“They absolutely showed up and showed off for us. The goalies were definitely the heart of this game,” Landeros said.
Even with the holiday break coming up, Wilson won’t be away from the water for long. The Bruins will play in the Newport Holiday Cup at the end of break, hoping to continue to tighten things up as February playoffs approach.
“Learning from our mistakes and just thinking about the next play is important, and that goes with thinking about the next game and thinking about bigger goals that our team has than just league games,” K. O’Dea said. “Our goal is to make it far in the playoffs and potentially getting a CIF title this year.”
