In its most pivotal game up to this point, boys water polo dominated St. Ignatius College Preparatory today, November 14, ending the game with a lopsided score of 15-8. This critical victory advances the team to CCS Finals, where they are slated to face Sacred Heart Preparatory.

Although the Eagles let in the first goal of the game, the team immediately reacted by scoring in response. Similar back and forth action continued for some time, and at the end of the first quarter, the score stood at 3-3.

“Our defense struggled a bit in the first quarter,” Captain senior Ian McColl said. “They put three points in right away. That was concerning.”

To compensate for the even score of the first quarter, the team quickly seized command of the second quarter, relying on a combination of relatively solid defense and superlative offense. Sensing that its opponents were tiring rapidly, the team went for the kill, scoring three points while also coordinating airtight defense.

“We came out dominant in the second,” junior Derrick Lu said. “We quickly got a 6-3 lead.”

Also on the Eagles’ side was a momentous turn of events that dramatically weakened St. Ignatius’ offense. Due to the accumulation of major fouls, St. Ignatius’ two top scoring players were ejected from the game. With pressure on their defense alleviated to a degree, the team was able to focus on scoring, countering up and down the pool throughout the second quarter.

“They started the second quarter without two of their best players,” Ian said. “When I saw that, I thought, ‘We have this in the bag.”’

More of the same continued in the third quarter, in which the Eagles scored with impunity.

While the final score tallied up as 15-8, the team enjoyed a relatively even distribution of scorers. A total of eight players scored, with notable standouts being Ian, who put six in the net, as well as juniors Sam Lisbonne and Ryan Seltzer, who both scored two apiece. Seniors Paul Bergevin, Mark Schreiber and Drew Lytle as well as sophomore Brian Hogge all scored as well.

“That’s something we really take pride in,” Ian said. “We are not lost without our top scorers.”

Ian rallied the team in the final quarter, working to control the ball and kill the clock. This patience allowed the team to take a dominating position in the game as the match came to a close.

“We really needed to make sure we controlled the ball and tightened up our offense,” Ian said
We worked the ball around on the outside and took our time on shots.”

The Eagles’ were able to take advantage of the the thirty-second-shot clock rule, which states that if a team possesses the ball for more than thirty seconds without attempting to score, the ball is automatically turned over to the opposing team. By playing tight defense from the second quarter on, the Eagles were able to force turnovers and eliminate scoring opportunities.

“We wanted to show everyone who we were and what we could do,” said Derrick. “Our team has great bonding–we know what the person to our left and right will be doing. We took all that and left everything we had in the water.”

When the smoke cleared at the end of the game, the Eagles lead by a total of seven points, effectively routing St. Ignatius. With its spot in the CCS Finals secured for the second consecutive year, the team is completely focused on the task ahead: defeating Sacred Heart’s powerhouse team and claiming CCS gold.