Varsity boys water polo beat Los Gatos 13-6 today, September 14. The Eagles scored 10 goals during their aggressive first half. LAHS’s explosive counterattacks and tight defense led to increased ball possession and more goals.

The game started off quickly, with senior Kevin Stangl taking initiative and scoring the first goal within the first 18 seconds. Junior Ian McColl scored shortly, overpowering his defender to a clear shot at the goal. Senior Matthew Orton led the team scoring tonight, with five goals in the first half, and an overpowering backhand shot in the third quarter.

Varsity defense allowed them to gain turnovers from almost every Los Gatos possession, with each team member pressuring inaccurate passing.

“We played really good team defense,” senior Adam Warmoth said. “We pressed hard in the lanes and were able to get a lot of steals that led into those counterattacks.”

However, the Eagles picked up many penalties and kick-outs with their aggressive defense. Los Gatos was awarded free-shots, which could have become detrimental if the game had been close.

The players are not only learning how to play as a team, but are also focusing on committing less fouls.

“We’d like to work on not getting ejected as much, which means helping out each other on drives and showing our hands to the referees to make sure we’re not doing anything illegal,” Adam said.

LAHS has a home game next Tuesday, September 20 at 3:30 p.m. against Mountain View High School (MVHS).