From the first whistle, the Santa Catalina High girls water polo
team looked to be on a mission.
Monterey – From the first whistle, the Santa Catalina High girls water polo team looked to be on a mission.
It took only 34 seconds for the Cougars to fire in their first goal and by the time the first period of Saturday’s Tri-County Athletic League title game against San Benito was over, Santa Catalina held a 5-0 lead and it earned a 16-7 win to take home the league title.
“They were in control right from the beginning,” ‘Balers coach Lacey Sutton said of the Cougars, who also handed San Benito a 14-8 loss on Oct. 17.
Santa Catalina had the game well in hand with an 8-0 lead in the second quarter before the ‘Balers’ Stephanie Rodriguez finally put them on the board.
“I think our girls were more nervous this time,” Sutton said in comparison to the last meeting with the Cougars, where San Benito fell down 4-0 early but still kept the game relatively close throughout.
Santa Catalina led this one 9-1 at halftime and despite a goal by Katie Buzzetta 10 seconds into the third quarter, the ‘Balers never got within reach.
The Cougars pushed the lead to 16-3 in the fourth quarter before bringing in their substitutes, at which point San Benito scored the game’s final four goals.
Buzzetta and Rodriguez both had two goals for the ‘Balers and Shelli Reed, Jarae Tanner and Jayme Telles also found the back of the cage.
Despite the loss, San Benito still managed the No. 8 seed in the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs, giving it a home game Wednesday against No. 9 Presentation.
“It’s going to take a loss of team work,” Sutton said of what the ‘Balers will need to do to bounce back from the loss.
