in highly contested CIF final
By Davis Thacker / Special to The Malibu Times
A memorable season that included an undefeated league season and a No. 2 seed in the playoffs for the Malibu High School girls water polo team ended with an 8-7 loss in the CIF finals to Warren High School.
The Sharks entered the Championship game following a 3-2 win in the semifinals against Cerritos High School on Feb. 23 at Cal Lutheran University. Following their opening wins against Tustin and Palm Springs, the Sharks moved on to the finals to face a Warren team that was seeded first in the Division 6A playoff bracket.
The game took place at William Woollet Aquatic Center in Irvine, the same place where the Malibu High boys water polo team came up short in the Championship game three months ago.
Following the routine warm ups and player introductions, the Sharks began the game with a fast pace and good defense. Malibu was the first team to strike, as senior Sophie Galate scored in the first minute of the opening quarter. Galate then scored again with three minutes left in the quarter, putting the Sharks up 2-0. At the end of the first quarter of play, the Sharks found themselves up 2-0 over the Bears.
The second period proved to be much more contested, as each team’s defense struggled to contain the opposing offense. The Bears scored their first goal of the game off a penalty shot, which cut their deficit to one goal.
The last two minutes of the first half provided spectators with a slew of goals by both teams. Warren scored two goals within the second-to-last minute of the half, giving them the lead for the first time of the game. However, the Sharks countered back, as Galate scored two goals in the last minute, giving her four goals in the first half alone. The Bears then scored off of a rebound of a penalty shot with one second left in the first half. Following the action-packed second quarter, the Bears were up 5-4.
The action of the second quarter got both sides excited for the second half of play. Malibu had a good showing of students, parents and teachers. Shark TV, Malibu High’s student broadcasting program, also covered the game. All in all, the game proved to be one of the highly attended road games this year for the Sharks.
The third quarter featured both teams’ defense stepping up their respective games. The Sharks allowed one goal after surrendering five the previous period. The Sharks, however, were able to tie the game at 6-6 at the end of the quarter behind two goals by Alyse Farrar.
The final quarter of play proved to be the deciding time of the game. With the score tied at six, the defenses’ locked down for the first half of the fourth quarter. However, the Bears finally broke the tie with a goal with three minutes left to play, and added another one with two and a half minutes left. The Sharks then answered with another quick goal by Farrar, making the score 8-7 in favor of Warren. The final two minutes featured a number of valiant attempts by the Sharks, including a last-minute heave down the pool by goalie Jojo White that almost tied the score.
While the loss is tough, the Sharks can take solace in the number of both individual and team accomplishments this season. The team went undefeated in league, posted an impressive nonleague record, and recorded a number of wins against teams in higher divisions.
One of the best accomplishments recorded on Saturday is the set by White, who now has the state record for blocks in a season (417) and most career blocks (1,324). White was a four-year starter for the Sharks and anchored a Malibu defense that was the team’s strong point this season. White was one of five seniors who were on the team this season, as White, Galate, Erika Wooller, Miranda Bard and Faith Brown led the team to the CIF Championship game this year.