The girls’ water polo team defeated the Woodside Wildcats 8-5 in their first league match of the season on Monday evening.
“I think that we had a lot to prove considering that Woodside is our biggest competitor. We wanted to show them who we were as a team and really bring the energy,” junior Gabby Rothstein said.
The Bears started the game strong with aggressive offense that led to a goal by junior Molly Gray. Just 30 seconds later, Woodside managed to make it past senior goalkeeper Lexi Nelson from a penalty shot. With 3:54 left in the quarter, the game was tied 1-1.
Woodside did not back down from M-A’s strong defense, reaching the net with 1:36 left in the first quarter. The Bears retaliated with a goal from senior Ruby Pence, ending the first quarter 2-2.
Right out of the gate, the Wildcats forced their way to the net, pulling ahead for the first and last time of the game. M-A was shooting but not making it into the cage, while Nelson was able to block any attempts from Woodside.
The Bears picked up their momentum by the end of the first half with senior Elizabeth Hoffman, junior Sabine Polly, and Gray each scoring, putting them up 5-3.
“My favorite moment was definitely when me and Molly had an incredible connection at the end of the second quarter. That was maybe the most fun I have ever had in water polo,” Polly said.
Entering the second half, the Bears built on their lead and momentum as junior Scarlett Shenk quickly made it past the Wildcats goalkeeper.
As the Bears’ offense ramped up in the third quarter, their defense struggled. Though Nelson was blocking shot after shot, the Wildcats were still able to penetrate to the net. With 4:19 left in the quarter, a goal from Woodside raised the score 6-4.
As the fourth quarter began, both teams felt tense. Woodside was making moves to close in on the Bears’ lead, scoring once more to tighten the game 6-5. Yet, the Bears did not give Woodside the chance to even the score as Polly broke the dry spell and made it into the cage.
“I think the game definitely could have been better, we kind of played down to their level and beat ourselves, but I’m glad we pulled through with the win,” Shenk said.
With the Bears up two points both teams struggled to take control of the game, but sophomore Sarah Coolican found an opening in the Wildcats’ defense and scored. The Bears were up 8-5 with just 53 seconds left in the final quarter.
Woodside scored one more goal in the last two seconds, but this was not enough to close in on the Bears. M-A ended the game with a 8-6 victory against their rivals, setting the tone for the rest of the season.
“I’m looking forward to seeing our team grow as a whole, and how our momentum can work together to see how much better we can get during the season,” Rothstein said.
The Bears will face the Menlo Knights at home this Friday at 5:00 p.m..
