No. 3 Capistrano Valley Slips By Newport Harbor

Newport Harbor, ranked seventh in Orange County, made third-ranked Capistrano Valley sweat it out before the host Cougars squeaked out a 7-5 victory in a nonleague girls’ water polo game Friday at Saddleback College.

Newport Harbor (12-5) had a two-goal lead in the second quarter before Capistrano Valley (15-3) eventually wore down the Sailors.

Although Newport Harbor scored only once in the final 2 1/2 quarters, the Sailors kept it a one-goal game until late in the fourth quarter when Capistrano Valley’s Amber Stachowski scored her third goal of the second half with 1 minute 2 seconds remaining.

Cori Ehrlich and Chelsea Rowlands each scored first-half goals, and Ashley Stachowski, Amber’s sister, scored twice in the first half to help Capistrano Valley win.

“Ashley might be the best player we have in Orange County,” Newport Harbor co-Coach Brian Kreutzkamp said. “We just got out-muscled and we couldn’t adjust.”

Alden Moore scored three goals to help keep Newport Harbor close, and her final goal pulled the Sailors within 6-5 with 1 minute 48 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

But the closest Newport Harbor came to tying the score came on Moore’s shot midway through the fourth quarter that ricocheted off the left goal post.

Newport Harbor has until Wednesday to regroup when it faces second-ranked Irvine (14-4) in a Sea View League game.

“We’re both unbeaten in league and Irvine is very similar to Capistrano Valley,” Kreutzkamp said. “This game was a measuring stick. We’re right there.”