Morgan Hill – Sobrato’s varsity boys water polo team captured
their first ever victory Tuesday defeating the Silver Creek High
School Raiders 12-9.
Morgan Hill – Sobrato’s varsity boys water polo team captured their first ever victory Tuesday defeating the Silver Creek High School Raiders 12-9.
In its inaugural 2006-07 season Sobrato dropped every match, and until Tuesday they had dropped the first four matches of the 2007-08 season.
Senior Steven Boyd and sophomore Jared Mammen led the attack for the Bulldogs with six goals a piece, each scoring two in the first quarter giving Sobrato an early 4-2 lead.
Boyd, 18, the lone senior on the team, was relieved to finally win a game, and pleased with the Bulldogs’ execution.
“It feels really good,” he said. “The team played great, our passes were clean and it was just a really clean game overall.”
In the second quarter, Boyd, the team captain, shot another one past the Raiders goalie at the 5:39 mark, and Mammen extended Sobrato’s lead to six with a little more than minute left.
As time ticked down in the half, Sobrato looked to pull away from Silver Creek, but the Raiders’ goalie made two big saves.
Mammen’s shot on goal was blocked and Sobrato’s Mark Barats collected the rebound and took another shot which was also blocked.
Switching goals didn’t slow down the Bulldogs attack, as Mammen and Boyd each recorded a goal in the third quarter.
After saving a hard shot, Sobrato goalie Sam Paveza threw a long pass to Mammen who swam around a defender and maneuvered close to the net for his third goal.
Coach Paul Harris got a warning towards the end of the third period for criticizing the referee’s penalty calls, which he thought were favoring Silver Creek.
“I come from a very traditional water polo background, and they were making calls that encourage bad techniques,” Harris said.
Up 10-7 to start the fourth quarter, Mammen extended the Bulldogs lead on a goal at the 4:11 mark, but the Raiders quickly answered back scoring at 3:37.
On Sobrato’s ensuing possession Boyd scored another goal for Sobrato on an assist from Danny Thompson.
Paveza made a big save at the 2:00 mark, and Harris signaled the goalie to slow things down and control the pace for the remainder of the game.
Paveza found an open teammate down court and the Bulldogs took three quick shots on goal, which were all blocked by the Raiders’ goalie.
“His head and heart are in the game,” Harris said of Paveza. “He’s a source of motivation for the team.”
Silver Creek pushed the ball and scored their last goal at the 1:00 mark, but Sobrato then used quick and consistent passing to keep the ball away from the Raiders, and secure the first boys water polo victory in school history.
“We had good positioning and good passing,” Harris said. “Our swimming is making the difference, and it has really improved since the beginning of the season.”
