Acorns begin CCS run at home Wednesday
San Jose – Before entering the Blossom Valley Athletic League Mount Hamilton Division championship game against Leland on Saturday, the Live Oak girls water polo team had outscored opponents in the tournament 32-6.
But the Acorns succumbed to a strong counter-attack driven offense to fall 20-4 to the Chargers.
“The girls played well and they played hard,” said head coach Sharon Hyrne. “Leland is faster than we are. They kept counter attacking and we couldn’t set our front court (defense). We just didn’t have the speed.”
Leland jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first quarter, taking advantage of four Live Oak turnovers.
The Acorns became more aggressive in the second quarter, taking chances and getting physical with the Leland players.
Ashley Rojas put Live Oak on the board midway through the second quarter when she converted a five-meter penalty shot.
Senior Laura Shope also found the back of the net when she muscled her way past the Charger defenders for the score. She finished the game with a team leading two goals.
However the aggressive play also led to Leland counter attacking and the Chargers went into the half leading 11-2.
Courtney Monsees led the Leland charge with three goals in the quarter, giving her six by the end of the half.
Teammate Christy Stibbe added a left hook to Live Oak’s chin as she racked up four goals in the first two quarters of play.
Hyrne said the Acorns’ only chance came when they could slow down the Leland advance, which allowed her girls to set a traditional defense.
“We were able to set up our front court, we held them for the most part,” Hyrne said.
Hyrne said despite the score, her girls were able to take something away from the game.
“It is good experience for us to play teams like this,” Hyrne said in reference to Leland’s counter attack style. “It is good for us to go up against physical teams like this.”
The girls will next begin Central Coast Section Division II play when they host Saratoga on Wednesday at 3pm.
