The El Camino men’s water polo team competed in a double header this Friday, Sept 15. against Southwestern and Fullerton, in a tournament hosted by Mount San Antonio College.
Led by team captain Blake Klade, and coaches Noah Rubke and Seth Ulrich the Warriors would split the day, losing 11-13 to Southwestern but beating Fullerton 12-5.
Southwestern got an early lead during the first match, getting five points on the board during the first quarter. El Camino tried to keep up, scoring four times during both the first and second quarters.
Southwestern outscored the Warriors during both the third and fourth, El Camino managed no points during the fourth giving Southwestern the game.
“We had some good plays but we can improve,” said team member and freshman Scott Fujiwara. “I know I can personally improve.”
El Camino started the second game against Fullerton hot, with freshman Marc Bagarin scoring the first point of the match.
In the 1st period, the Warriors were able to score four goals within the first eight minutes of the game. Warriors focused on offensive plays against Fullerton, allowing them to effectively repel Fullerton’s goal attempts.
Fullerton did not score their first goal until the second period.
Fullerton spent the first three periods of the game trying to keep up but would score no more than two points in any given quarter.
The Warriors played their best all four periods, working as a team, and scoring consistently throughout the match. Meanwhile, Fullerton attempted many goal attempts throughout the game but couldn’t find their footing, missing shots and sometimes going over the net itself.
It was not until the fourth and final period that Fullerton gained some momentum. Fullerton ramped up their defense and started successfully blocking El Camino’s goal attempts. But it was not enough to catch up.
The match ended with an El Camino victory of 12-5.
The Warriors were able to finish the day with a one-loss and one-win split. Although El Camino won the game, the players also had some humble self-reflection after the game.
“We played a solid game but we need to work on offense,” said Bagarin.
Not unlike the results of the game, coach Rubke was split on his players’ performance.
“We will take the win, although there are a lot of things that need to be improved such as shot selections,” Rubke said.
Rubke was a former student at El Camino College and played on the water polo team.
“We all communicated better compared to the [first] game,” said team captain Klade.
The Warriors returned to Mt. SAC the next day on Saturday, Sept. 16 where they faced off against Santa Monica and Cyprus College.
The Warriors would split losses and victories again, beating Santa Monica 13-5 but losing to Cypress 15-9.
Next Match
El Camino vs. Citrus College
@ Citrus College
Date: Friday, Sept. 22
Time: 11 a.m.
