With Live Oak out of the way, the San Benito girls’ water polo
team is hoping to win the Independence Sixer Tournament today.
Staff Reports
With Live Oak out of the way, the San Benito girls’ water polo team is hoping to win the Independence Sixer Tournament today.
The Lady ‘Balers (7-2) downed the rival Acorns 5-3 Friday in their first game of the two-day tournament at San Jose’s Independence High, prompting the girls to throw head coach Lacey Sutton in the pool.
“(The game) was exciting,” Sutton said afterwards. “We were so pumped. The girls were so excited to win this game. Their faces lit up once we won.”
Live Oak had been the ‘Balers’ longtime Tri-County Athletic League foil, but the teams figure to meet much more sporadically now that the Acorns have moved to the Blossom Valley Athletic League. Sutton said San Benito had not defeated its Morgan Hill rival since 2002.
The ‘Balers also defeated Fresno’s Clovis East 7-4 later Friday. Because Salinas backed out of the tournament, San Benito gained entry to today’s championship game at 2:15pm.
Sutton was quick to say the girls’ performance bodes well for the team’s immediate future. “Just beating Live Oak gave us a lot of momentum. It’s going to give us positive encouragement,” the San Benito coach said, “that hard work and teamwork pays off.”
