Carlmont’s JV girls water polo team came short of securing a victory after facing off against the Aragon Dons on Thursday evening.
The Dons scored their first point a few seconds into the game, leaving the Scots trailing behind. The Dons were ahead each quarter, ending with a final score of 13-9.
“I know we lost pretty badly, but honestly, for us, it feels like a win since we haven’t won yet this season. We were very close, and it felt like we would’ve won if they had fewer players,” said junior goalie Zoe Banner-Haimes. “We just got tired, and they were outswimming us in the end.”
The Dons’ extensive roster gave them an advantage when playing the game. They were able to substitute players more often, and despite their efforts, the Scots weren’t able to keep up.
“I think we just got tired, and we have to work on being more aggressive,” said freshman Lauren Henne.
The varsity girls team won in the previous game, making many of the JV players optimistic that they would come out on top.
“I was positive we were going to win this game, but parts of our defense and offense were off, and we got worn out really fast,” said sophomore Maddy Lobo.
Although the game didn’t turn out as the Scots had hoped, head coach CC Stratton saw many positive outlooks.
“They had to improve on their aggression, and they definitely got more aggressive as the game went on,” Stratton said. “We’ve been practicing a lot combined with varsity lately and doing a lot of scrimmaging.”
The Scots will continue to work on their skills as the season progresses. A few of their focuses include protecting the goal, increasing their stamina, and learning more moves on how to get around defense. By tightening up these skills, Carlmont is confident of beating Aragon next time around.
In less than a month, the Scots and Dons will match up again. Looking at Carlmont and Aragon’s record, they have mixed wins and losses against each other. No team has dominated.
There is still a long way to go for the JV girls, and they will continue to work hard in hopes that it will pay off.
“Up on the peninsula, Carlmont is seen as a pretty competitive group. I would say they’re probably around average among the other high schools,” said referee Brian Papka.
Carlmont emphasizes that each game serves as a learning opportunity, and they are confident in securing victories against upcoming opponents in weeks to come.
