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NEWPORT BEACH — Mater Dei’s boys water polo team made significant history at the South Coast Tournament on Saturday but that wasn’t what mattered most to the Monarchs.
They instead took pride in the resolve they showed in capturing the strong, early-season tournament.
No. 2 Mater Dei overcame deficits against its final three opponents, highlighted by a rally for a 12-10 victory against host and third-ranked Newport Harbor in the championship match.
“The thing that I’m most proud of is our guys showing that resilience,” fourth-year Mater Dei coach Brian Anderson said. “Those elements of the process are the most important part that is going to help us in the long run.”
The Monarchs (10-1) captured the tournament for the first time since 2017, Olympian Chris Segesman’s final season as coach.
Newport Harbor (9-1) led 3-1 midway through the first period but Mater Dei erupted for five goals in the second period to seize control.
The Monarchs closed the half with a 4-0 run, capped by a counterattack strike in the closing seconds by center Carter Loth. The junior gave Mater Dei an 8-5 lead after the Sailors missed a chance to run out the second-period clock.
Loth’s biggest impact came at 2 meters. He drew six exclusions to help fuel a power-play that went 4 for 9.
Mater Dei also closed the third period well as junior goalie Nathan Tauscher made one of his nine saves on a counterattack chance that would have trimmed the Monarchs’ lead to 10-9.
“He’s literally is the foundation of our defense,” Mater Dei senior attacker said Vinnie Merk said of Tauscher.
Tauscher’s save loomed significant as Landon Akerstrom won the fourth-period sprint, leading to a key goal by fellow junior Charlie McHenry that extended the Monarchs’ lead to 11-8.
Merk paced Mater Dei with four goals, including two on penalties shots, while Loth and Logan McCarroll each added two.
Mater Dei also rallied past hot-shooting Sacred Heart Prep in the semifinals for a 9-7 victory and Orange Lutheran 11-10 in the quarterfinals. Tauscher blocked a penalty in the semifinals and scored in the quarterfinals.
Mason Hunt and Gage Verdegaal each scored three goals for the Sailors while Ben Liechty added two strikes and two assists.
The Sailors edged top-ranked and Surf League rival Huntington Beach 11-10 in the semifinals.
In the third-place match:
Sacred Heart Prep 11, Huntington Beach 11: Gavin West, a speedy transfer two years ago from Connecticut, scored six goals and Stanford commit Griff Price made eight saves as the Gators won to cap Coach Brian Kreutzkamp’s first high school event at Newport Harbor in about 20 years. Kreutzkamp, who led the Sailors’ boys to a CIF Division 1 title in 2000, is in his 18th year at Sacred Heart Prep. “It’s super cool to come back here,” he said.
In the fifth-place match:
Orange Lutheran 16, Harvard-Westlake 13: Leo Giessmann scored six goals to lead the Lancers.
More South Coast Tournament coverage to come
This post first appeared on ocregister.com
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