The Carlmont varsity boys water polo team lost to the Menlo-Atherton (M-A) Bears 14-6 in their first matchup of the season. This dropped the Scots to a record of 1-2 in the league.
“Our goals were to lock up their middle, shut them down defensively, and grind on the attack,” said junior Eli Samon. “I felt like we did that, but it could’ve been better.”
M-A was able to score the first goal of the game, but Carlmont quickly retaliated by scoring a goal themselves. Throughout the first half, M-A continued to outscore Carlmont, leaving the halftime score at 7-3.
The Scots started the third quarter strong, executing their offense strategy. Juniors Keegan Sullivan and Eli Samon scored a goal in the second half, contributing two overall goals each. However, M-A’s defense excelled in the second half, limiting Carlmont to five points while extending their own lead to 14.
“We had a lot of good shots. Keegan Sullivan made two really good pressured shots. Gabe Goncalves, our goalie, blocked a lot of hard shots too,” said head coach Adam Dean. “Even the referees gave the boys kudos. Even though we lost, it was a good game.”
Before this matchup, Carlmont faced some difficulties. There were a few injuries in days prior to the game, including senior goalie Gabe Goncalves, who injured his wrist due to overuse. Carlmont’s pool is also broken due to heater issues.
“We could have done better offensively, like shooting the ball more instead of at the goalie, but I think we played okay for not being able to be in our pool since last Thursday,” Goncalves said.
California law states that the pool temperature has to be above 77 degrees Fahrenheit. Therefore, this left the team with minimal other options. They held a practice earlier this week at Sequoia High School and hope to have another one soon if the heater is not fixed.
“We weren’t able to practice in the water yesterday, which definitely played in how we performed today,” Dean said. “I get word that the pool should be fixed by Friday.”
Still, this is not ideal since the Scots have another game scheduled for this upcoming Thursday. Despite these challenges, Carlmont’s team has high hopes for the rest of the season, especially the seniors, who are determined to end the year strong.
“I’m kind of sad. This is a sport that I love playing at a high school level, and I’ve made a lot of good friends. The team is excited for the rest of the season. We want to beat Hillsdale and Burlingame and have a closer score against M-A,” said senior co-captain Nathan Chan.
