LJ b water polo 9, Bishop's 15 - Game story

Shot attempt by Viking attacker
Gavin Olson (white cap, #2)
in the third quarter.
(Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Usually, La Jolla's water polo team is the one that beats up on the little guys, then toys with them.

But in their game at rival Bishop's Thurs., Sept. 26, this was a different animal.

The host Knights, instead, were toying with Coach Tom Atwell's squad.

The La Jolla corner of the pool, opposite the large photo posters of last year's and this year's Bishop's squads, was strangely quiet.

That commonly only happens when the game is an easy blowout win--or the reverse.

Bishop's, coached by Doug Peabody, came in ranked number one in CIF San Diego. La Jolla, coached by Tom Atwell, was in the number seven slot.

Lefty Jack Martin wreaked havoc on his brothers from up Nautilus St. From the point, Martin, a big, burly presence, repeatedly waved the ball above his head from his commanding position at the top. Then, when he wasn't passing to give the ball to his teammates around the perimeter, or leaking deft feed passes inside to the two-meter, he was firing at will at Viking goalie Levi Lentin's domain.

The result was a resounding 15-9 win for the Knights. It was, on this occasion before a hundred or more fans from the neighboring schools, "Knight time."

After La Jolla's Alex Brown scored the first goal of the game, Bishop's moved out to a 4-2 lead at the end of the first quarter behind a pair of goals by Kyto Fraley.

The Vikings still only trailed by three, 6-3, at halftime.

However, in a stretch from four minutes left in the third quarter through the end of the period, Martin scored two of four Bishop's goals for a commanding 10-5 lead. La Jolla never closed the gap.

Brown had three goals to lead the Vikings' scoring. Cole Black added two.