Obstacles like hot weather, illnesses and academic obligations hindered both the men’s and women’s water polo team at the Fullerton tournament the weekend of Sept. 25-26.
“We were missing a few essential players, such as our goalie,” coach Corey Stanbury said of the men’s team on Friday’s games.
“With the first game, we had a pretty good chance. We can beat Southwestern,” Stanbury said. “But without the whole team playing, the loss was hard.”
The team had already faced a 14-10 loss against Cerritos College only a few days before.
Stanbury said fatigue from that game may have contributed to a bad first day of the tournament,.
On Saturday, the Warriors were back with the full team and won 19-9 win against Santa Monica and 15-4 against Miramar.
“Over the second day, we got to play every player, and get them out there,” Stanbury said.
In the game against Santa Monica, freshman Arpad Toldi scored nine goals and had five assists while fellow freshman Madison Hedgecock scored three goals.
“The second games were much better and stronger for us,” player Jose Bahena, 19, said.
Offensively, Stanbury said the team was strong throughout the weekend, and that it was other factors that led to the dismal first day and not a lack of heart.
The last game of the tournament was the men’s defeat of Miramar, where Jeff Craver and Javier Molina stood out as some of the strongest players, Stanbury said.
“They (Craver and Molina) just had really good games,” Stanbury said, adding that Molina scored seven goals against Miramar.
The weekend was long for the team, but even in defeat, they are proud and had good numbers and good defense, Bahena said.
The women’s team fared similarly.
“We played all right, but we’re mostly all tired,” Amanda Sloss, 20, said.
The women also had a game against Cerritos earlier in the week, resulting in the team having three game days in a 1-week period. In addition, the weekend’s hot weather had a negative impact on the team.
“It was really hot and we typically aren’t used to playing in that kind of weather,” Tara Yeno, 20, said.
Despite being ill, team captain Erica Shaw scored two goals in the game against Fullerton and three goals against Saddleback during Friday’s games.
Though the team lost both matches with a 15-5 loss against Fullerton and a 11-5 against Saddleback, Sloss said they were all more optimistic about Saturday’s games.
Their optimism showed in a 15-8 win against Rio Hondo.
“We came togther as a team and worked hard,” Yeno said.
Goalkeeper Alex Stumpf made nine saves during the game, while player Margaret Drischler scored six times against Rio Hondo.
Assistant coach Monica Lizarraga-Papke said Drischler had an “amazing Saturday.”
The next game resulted in a 10-5 loss against Grossmont. In addition, Sloss sustained a broken nose when she was elbowed in the face.
Lizarraga-Papke saw this tournament as a chance for growth and improvement for the team, she said.
Lizarraga-Papke added that she appreciates the team’s cooperation despite the losses.
“The whole team had a chance to play, and they learned that they can have a bigger role in the next game,” Lizarraga-Papke said.