The Malibu High School girls water polo team advanced to the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern Section playoffs after a thrilling come-from-behind victory Thursday. But the Sharks season came to an end two days later with an 8-7 loss against Louisville High School in a game where the winning goal was scored with less than a second remaining on the clock.
The Sharks (21-9 overall and 12-0 in league play) automatically advanced to the second round of the playoffs after earning a first-round bye by winning the Tri-Valley league. In the second-round game against Chadwick High School (15-8), the Sharks trailed by three goals as late as the third quarter. However, Malibu refused to give up, and with a little more than a minute to go in the fourth quarter, Rachel Whittemore stepped up with a goal that tied the game at six.
In overtime, Searra Silverberg, Gianna Fote and Katie Rollins each scored to give the Sharks a satisfying 9-7 victory. Reilley Lippman, Alex Dossett and Maggie Lawson rounded out the scoring for the Sharks.
“I started to freak out,” said Dossett, a senior, about the early deficit. “But, I knew the team was going to be there, and we all stepped up, every single one of us.”
In the third-round quarterfinal game Saturday, the Sharks played a nail-biter with Louisville High School (20-11) at home. With seconds to play, the score was tied at seven. In a heartbreaking ending, Louisville first shot and missed, only to have Louisville’s Heidi Carlson snatch the rebound and score the winning goal with .8 seconds on the clock, for an 8-7 win.
The Sharks were led by Silverberg, who had four goals. Fote, Dossett, and Whittemore also scored in the hard-fought loss. The Malibu players were disappointed with the loss, but proud they made it so far in the playoffs. It gave the very young Sharks squad a valuable experience that they hope will translate to success next season.
“This shows the girls what real water polo is,” Silverberg said. “We have a lot of young girls, so it kind of shows us where we need to grow and what we could become.”