The San Benito boys water polo team fell behind 6-2 at halftime
against Salinas Thursday and couldn’t claw back in the third and
fourth quarters, as the host Cowboys earned a 15-10 victory in
Tri-County Athletic League play.
SALINAS
The San Benito boys water polo team fell behind 6-2 at halftime against Salinas Thursday and couldn’t claw back in the third and fourth quarters, as the host Cowboys earned a 15-10 victory in Tri-County Athletic League play.
The eight-goal second half kept the Balers within striking distance, but a slow start in the opening two quarters allowed Salinas to hold down the victory.
It is San Benito’s first loss in TCAL play. The team is now 3-1 in league.
The Balers had a difficult time trying to stop Salinas’ Brian Morton, who was the TCALs Most Valuable Player from a year ago. Morton pocketed eight goals for the Cowboys on Thursday.
“We tried to contain that guy and he’s not really containable,” San Benito head coach Tom Agan said of Morton, who scored 103 goals for Salinas last season. “You can double-team him, triple-team him, and he can still put the ball in.
“But I thought the guys did a good job. I was proud of them. We were definitely in the ball park.”
Nick Angulo led the Balers with six goals, while Danny Jarrett, Carlos Huerta, Jake Garcia and Josh Schafer each recorded one goal apiece. Keeper Trevor Agan, meanwhile, had seven saves for the Balers.
“He did an outstanding job in goal today, blocked a lot of shots,” Agan said.
The San Benito head coach noted the physical nature of the match, adding, “We could have had some more help from the officials.”
The Balers have the weekend off and will return to the pool on Wednesday when they will host Monterey. Match time is 5:30 p.m.
San Benito Girls Water Polo
Behind seven goals and seven steals from sophomore driver Caitlin Schafer, the San Benito girls water polo team jumped out to a 4-0 halftime lead en route to an 11-2 victory over Salinas Thursday in Tri-County Athletic League play.
The Balers are now 4-0 in the TCAL, 11-3 overall.
Lindsay De La Torre had two goals for San Benito, while Hannah Smith and Rachel Estep each added one goal apiece. Jeanett Rodriguez added five steals and keeper Brittany Olguin had four saves.
San Benito will be in action this weekend at the Carmel Invitational, where it will take on Santa Catalina, Salinas and Homestead on Saturday with matches beginning at 8:30 a.m.
