On Monday, Sept. 16, Archie Williams girls varsity water polo defeated the Saint Ignatius Wildcats 11-5, securing their first home game victory. The Falcons fought with strength and coordination as the supporting crowd of parents and students cheered them on.
The Falcons began the first quarter strong, winning the sprint for first possession and demonstrating skilled offense with goals from freshman Taylor Fahy, freshman Elsa Kastner, and senior Avery Hinkelman. On the other side of the pool, Archie Williams senior goalkeeper Kaeley Sullivan blocked several shots from the Wildcats, only letting one pass, and concluded the first quarter with the score 4-1.
During the second quarter, the Falcons continued their strong pace and shut down the Wildcats’ offense with more saves from Kaeley, preventing them from scoring throughout the quarter. The Falcons also kept up their offensive game during the second quarter, adding three more goals to the score, coming from Taylor, Elsa, and senior Mila Rendic, bringing the score to 7-1 at halftime.
“For us, it’s about motion and making sure that we’re moving so that we can get the ball down and into position, and get it into the set, so we try to move and swim so that we are constantly putting pressure on the defense,” said Archie Williams head girls varsity water polo coach Tod Duplanty.
As the third quarter began, the Wildcats quickly advanced on the Falcons’ defense. Kaeley blocked another shot, and the Falcons recovered to add two more points to the board. Taylor and Avery both scored again, increasing their lead to 9-1.
Shortly after, the Wildcats returned with an attack, which breached the Falcon’s defense and found a goal. The Wildcats called a timeout near the end of the third quarter and gained two more goals to end the third quarter 9-4.
“There was this one player that we really had to focus on, and that if we just guarded her and were able to play our defense really well, then we’d be able to win the game,” said sophomore Holly Hovey.
Entering the fourth and final quarter to close out the game, the Falcons scored two more goals early on, leaving the Wildcats behind. Within the final 30 seconds of the game, Saint Ignatius scored the final point, leaving the score at 11-5.
“I feel like we definitely did have good team synergy, because our team has really bonded through team lunches and team dinners. We’ve all bonded outside the pool, and that’s helped inside the pool,” said junior Liat Holden.
The team looks forward to the rest of this season with hopes for future victories. Next, the Falcons will play San Rafael High School at home Wednesday, Sept. 18, preparing to continue their win streak.
