Newport Harbor boys’ water polo wins third straight South Coast Tournament title
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A quick look at the roster for the Newport Harbor High boys’ water polo team shows four freshmen and one senior, goalkeeper Lian Kim.
So, after graduating a 14-player senior class that helped the Sailors win back-to-back CIF Southern Section Open Division titles, it’s reasonable that expectations might be tempered for Newport Harbor this year.
Inside the program, though, the belief still remained.
“We didn’t care at all what anybody thought,” junior Sean Anderson said. “We knew that the group of guys that we had, for the most part, all of us have been together since [10-and-unders]. “There’s a huge trust that we all have for each other, and that comes with the practices. We’re practicing the same way that those 14 seniors practiced, and we’re putting in the same work. It’s nothing different, and with that same work comes the same results.”
The Sailors proved that true Saturday with a pair of impressive comeback victories, winning their host South Coast Tournament for the third straight year.
After outlasting top-seeded San Diego Cathedral Catholic 16-15 in the semifinals, they beat Orinda Miramonte 11-10 in sudden-death overtime to win the title. Anderson scored the game-winning golden goal, after Cooper Kelly won the sprint to start the third overtime period.
“I’m really proud of these guys,” Sailors coach Ross Sinclair said of his team, which was seeded fourth in the tournament. “We’re still super-young, even though they did some things today in this tournament to show a lot of maturity and grit and resiliency, that you normally get from teams that have been through that a lot. But these guys have been working really hard, and I think that’s the No. 1 thing. It’s not a secret, these guys have put in a lot of time in the video room and the pool.”
Anderson scored all four of his goals in the title match in the fourth quarter or overtime, including a cross-cage blast with three seconds left in regulation after a Miramonte field block.
He also scored at the buzzer of the first overtime period, and Caruso Polenzani’s goal with 58 seconds left in the second overtime period gave the hosts a 10-9 lead before Miramonte’s Tyler Williams scored a no-look goal to tie it up and send it to the golden goal period.
Owen Marks scored a pair of goals in the final and Kelly scored for the Sailors, who also got a goal from freshman Jude Williams.
Kim made 10 saves for the Sailors (8-1), who rallied from a 7-5 deficit in the fourth quarter.
“It’s great to see that now all of the seniors are gone, it’s our time to step up and everyone’s fulfilling their roles and doing their jobs,” Kim said. “It’s just a testament to the work that we’ve put in so far at the early-morning practices, and all of the weight room sessions that we’ve had. I just think our brotherhood kept us close and allowed the success today.”
It was Polenzani who put in a Herculean individual effort in the semifinal against Cathedral Catholic, scoring 10 goals while also playing the whole match.
He scored the game-winning goal with 21 seconds left, assisted by left-hander Davis Kipp, also making a perimeter field block in the closing seconds to preserve the win.
“I don’t know if there’s anyone out there in Newport water polo history that has played the whole game and scored 10 goals in a [tournament] semifinal against the best team in the country,” Sinclair said. “We don’t do a lot of individual stats … That’s one thing that you’ve got to celebrate.”
Marks scored three goals, Anderson added a pair and Kipp also scored for the Sailors. Kim made nine saves.
In the semifinal, the Sailors were down 8-5 in the second quarter to Cathedral Catholic, which was led by Max Bruhn with six goals. But the Sailors found a way to rally against the Dons, who had beaten Newport Harbor 12-10 in a nonleague match earlier this season.
The SD Dons club team, featuring Cathedral Catholic players, also beat Newport Beach for the 18-and-under title at the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics last summer.
On Saturday, though, the Sailors found a way.
“We all have faith in each other, and that just brings the team together,” Polenzani said. “We play smart, disciplined water polo and it just pays off … It motivates us, having people come in and say, ‘Newport’s not the same as it was last year.’ I feel like we’re always going to be at the top level of playing. That just showed today.”
Among other local teams at the South Coast Tournament, Corona del Mar placed 10th, losing 13-12 in overtime to Sacred Heart Prep in the ninth-place match. Laguna Beach beat Loyola 12-11 in overtime for 15th place, and Huntington Beach topped San Marcos 9-8 for 17th place.
