Viking Quinn Daniels (3, bottom left) looks for
a pass on the 1-2 side of the "box" in the first quarter,
with Liam Zarcu (arm raised) of Bishop's defending.
Goalie Luke Spiro (behind Zarcu's arm)
and Calvin Lubsen (far right) of the Knights
are in view. (Photos by Ed Piper)
By Ed Piper
La Jolla opened up a five-goal lead over Bishop's early in the third quarter, and held on to win 15-8 before a packed house in the CIF Open Division semifinals Tuesday, Nov. 11.
The victory places the Vikings clearly in the sights of number-one-seeded Cathedral Catholic for the title match slated Saturday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. at Coggan Aquatic Complex.
In a refreshing change from their double-overtime, sudden-death triumph over Poway in the quarterfinals last week, Coach Tom Atwell's squad enjoyed contributions from multiple players after all-everything Dexter Black opened the scoring with a goal in the first half-minute.
Junior Henry Glenister followed with another lefthanded shot--like Black, he's also a southpaw--then Quinn Daniels threw sidearm to score on a low shot in a flurry of goals in the first quarter for a 3-0 lead.
It looked like the game was going to follow the format of the Vikings' earlier regular-season matches against the Knights this season, both which resulted in LJHS wins.
Senior defender Nate Thomson deposited a goal with 31 seconds left in the first period, for a commanding 4-0 advantage. Black's goal at the buzzer was disallowed, fortunately for Bishop's. It would have faced the Knights with a daunting five-goal lead, pretty much insurmountable in high school water polo.
Senior Nate Thomson (10) of La Jolla, who won
three of four sprints to open the four quarters, is
closely defended by sophomore Calvin Lubson
of Bishop's.
After the visitors rallied behind goals by J.T. Moss and All-CIF Colton Bell to start the second quarter, La Jolla continued its team approach to scoring with another hit by Thomson. Glenister, shut out in the Poway game, notched another with three seconds left in the half.
Soon after halftime, Daniels scored on a lob, and the Vikings were riding the sails of a 7-2 lead. The LJ football team, sitting behind the southern goal near Nautilus Street, was going nuts.
Down the stretch, Atwell wanted the ball in the hands of Dexter, who scored three more goals.
Then, with over a minute left, the Knights trailing 12-8, co-coach Ian Davidson went with a desperation measure by pulling their goalie and going to a seven-man attack.
It left the Bishop's goal wide-open, and in three of four attempts from mid-pool or farther, Black fired shots that hit the mark for the final tally of 15-8.
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