After losing four of its last five games, the women’s water polo team is looking forward to playing a familiar rival to get back in the win column.
The Warriors (2-7) next play on Wednesday when they travel to Cerritos, in a rematch of an earlier game this season that was close to the very end.
“We played a close game with Cerritos last time but we came up short 12-9,” Laura Lizarzaburu said. “All of our games with them are close, so I’m excited about our upcoming game.”
Even though the Warriors have won one game of their last five, coach Corey Stanbury liked what he saw from his team against teams that are some of the best in the state.
“In the Mt. SAC tournament last weekend, we played pretty well considering the teams we faced were more talented then us; I’m proud of the way the team played in the tournament,” Stanbury said.
The water polo team had a tough time on the scoreboard in the Mt. SAC tournament, as it lost to Golden West, 20-0, L.A. Valley 8-4 and Saddleback 16-4, but did come out with a victory when it won against Santa Monica, 7-5.
“The win against Santa Monica was very encouraging, but I felt the whole tournament was also, because I felt the women played good, physical water polo, which is a big step for a young team,” Stanbury said.
Good physical water polo was not the only thing that Stanbury liked from the women as they showed their coach that they have improved on their previous weaknesses.
“The team did very well on its outside shooting and our defense against Saddleback was really good,” Stanbury said. “Usually, Saddleback can score a lot more then 16 goals in a game.”
Last Wednesday, the Warriors lost to defending state champions Long Beach City 19-0 in a game that the women felt was a good growing process for them.
“We did well against Long Beach when you figure they are the top team in the state,” Lizarzaburu said. “It was a good game because we learned a lot about ourselves as a team and that game against Long Beach City will help us in our future games.”
The Warriors did have a disadvantage in their past five games because they have had a lack of subs or tired players for subs because of injuries of prior engagements of the women.
“The last few games, our players were not there or just came back from a lifeguard test from earlier in the day, which meant that they had already swam miles already before a game that is physically exhausting,” Lizarzaburu said.
Men get a week off
Coming off tough losses, the men look to take advantage of seven days off to rebound against the Cerritos College Falcons Wednesday at 4:15 p.m. in Cerritos.
“Cerritos is very good, they are better than we are,” coach Stanbury said. “They are experienced and faster than we are.”
The Warriors have been facing strong competition, while they are still looking for their first victory of the season. They are gaining confidence and experience.
“Loses won’t take our confidence away,” Hok-Him Fung said. “It actually makes our team more solid and unified.”
The Warriors got is lone goal from freshman Scott London with Three and a half minutes remaining in the last quarter of the match.
“We play powerful teams every time,” Stanbury said. “They may not have won a game yet, but they are improving.”
