After their recent wins against Ocean View High School (9-5, 0-0 league) and Rio Mesa High School (3-12, 0-3 league) during the Ocean View Tournament last Saturday, the Barons (6-16, 0-5 league) played one of their last games of the season against Edison High School (14-14, 2-4 league), losing by a score of 2-11.
“Edison’s always been a better school at water polo,” head coach Kai Fujita said. “I thought the girls did great for who they played against.”
Senior Madison (Maddie) Doty and Sophomore Han Ngo both scored a point each in the second half of the game, and Junior Charlotte Jepsen played a key role in saving a few shots during the final quarter. Sophomore Penny Jepsen, on the other hand, created multiple opportunities for scoring and facilitated much of the offense on the Barons’ side.
The second quarter was characterized by fruitless attempts to score on both sides. Senior Maggie Rogers blocked multiple shots from the Chargers, tightening the defense for the Barons. Shortly after, the Barons upped the intensity of their offense, taking every open opportunity to aim at the net. Sophomores Penny Jepsen, Katie Kurr and Han Ngo made quick passes that the Chargers couldn’t intercept. However, none of the players were able to successfully score, leaving the final score of 0-6 by the end of the first half.
Going into the third quarter, the Chargers scored two goals within the first few minutes of the period, awarding themselves a score of 0-8. Doty, playing at the top as the point, took possession of the ball before swimming her way down the pool to the opposite side, making a quick pass to Penny Jepsen before taking the ball back to score the first goal for the Barons.
The Chargers then made another goal shortly after for a score of 1-9. Ngo took the ball for the Barons once the team repossessed it, passing to Penny Jepsen, who then attempted to pass to Senior Cameron Bridges. The latter play was intercepted by the Chargers, leading to a scramble to the goal as the opposing player got closer. Both Penny Jepsen and Charlotte Jepsen were able to keep the player from aiming. Senior Rita Wilton raced from one side of the court to another after a pass from Bridges was intercepted by another opponent, saving another goal from the Chargers. With only thirty seconds left, both sides attempted to score before the clock buzzed.
Beginning the fourth quarter, the Barons rushed the ball onto the other side of the pool with renewed vigor, but lost it due to an interception by Edison. Many of the players were blocking their Edison counterparts from assisting, leaving the goal undefended from the Chargers, who awarded themselves another point.
FVHS tried to score another goal once the ball was back in their possession, only for the opposing team to score again when goalkeeper Rogers rushed out of the goal to try and affect a shot. On the offensive, Kurr passed the ball to Ngo, and Ngo scored the second goal for the team, leaving a final score of 2-11 by the end of the game.
“What could have they done better? I don’t think that there’s much. Like I said, Edison [has] a [lot]of girls that play club, so they have a lot more experience than our team. The girls still played great because they put in great effort,” Fujita said. “Their defense was solid, and their offense was good too, but Edison was just a little stronger. I always want to see effort and intensity, [and] as long as we have that, then I’m happy with it.”
