The Aliso Niguel Girls’ Water Polo team is currently 10-7 in season games and 3-2 in league play. They are in third place in the Sea View league and on a three-game winning streak. They hope to continue with this intensity of play.
When asked about the team’s satisfaction with its performance, Coach Danny Werner says, “The games leading up to the league and the first few games did not go as well as we hoped due to injuries and sickness, but we are quickly getting back to how we normally play.”
The second and third games the Wolverines played in the league were against the Capo Valley Cougars. It was expected early on in the season that they would be the toughest competition in the league the Wolverines would face. The Wolverines first played the Cougars at home on Dec. 19 and fought hard throughout the match, but ultimately lost 15-16. They faced them for the second time on Jan. 7 at Capo Valley High School. Similar to the first game, the scores were very close. Unfortunately, the Wolverines lost again with a relatively low-scoring game of 6-7.
Despite the tough losses to the Cougars, the Lady Wolverines have been performing very well. In December, they won five out of the six games they played, the only loss being to Capo. In January, they have only lost one out of the four games they have played so far, that loss also coming from Capo.
Coach Werener says, “This year, teams like Dana Hills and Anaheim have had some amazing programs. These games really push ourselves because we had an amazing team last year and we want to prove that we are still a great team.”
In the Dana Hills game, the Wolverines lost 5-7, the third quarter ultimately being the Wolverines’ downfall because the Dolphins scored four goals. However, the game against Anaheim set up the Wolverines for success in the league with the final score being 13-6.
The girls’ first league game was against the Mission Viejo Diablos on Dec. 12. When the teams faced off, the Diablos’ record was 7-3, so the game was expected to be close. Luckily, the Wolverines crushed the Diablos throughout the whole game, with the final score being 13-6.
Varsity player, Cara Eluna says, “It was great to start the league off with a win. It propels us to keep working hard throughout the rest of the league”.
The next two games were the previously mentioned losses against the Cougars. However, the game following those two showed the skill level of the water polo team. On Jan. 8, Aliso faced the Trabuco Hills Mustangs. Similar to the game against the Diablos, the Wolverines destroyed the Mustangs, with the final score of 21-9.
On Jan. 9, the Wolverines played a non-league match against the Northwood Timberwolves. They won with relative ease, 10-6. This game perfectly set up their following game against the Diablos for the second time. Just like the first game, they won, but the score was slightly closer this time, 15-11.
