Sailors squash the streak

Steve Virgen

The Foothill High Knights say they have a target on their backs when

it comes to girls water polo. Well, Newport Harbor hit the

bull’s-eye.

The Sailors battled back from a two-goal deficit in the fourth

quarter and went on to defeat defending Sea View League champion

Foothill, 10-9, in a thrilling overtime game. The Tars ended the

Knights’ winning streak at 49 games Wednesday in front of about 500

fans at Newport.

Carolyn Conway led the Sailors (9-1, 1-0 in league) with four

goals. Ashling Taylor and Melissa Wheeler scored a goal each in the

first three-minute overtime period for a 10-8 lead, and Newport held

off Foothill (12-1, 0-1) in the second overtime period.

“They kept battling the whole way,” Newport Coach Bill Barnett

said of his players. “That was great. It shows a lot of character on

their part. It took a lot of hard work and being in good condition to

make a comeback like that.”

Barnett also expressed pleasure in the game’s atmosphere and said

the back-and-forth battle was exciting. There were seven ties in a

game that featured the top-ranked team in CIF Southern Section

Division I, Foothill, and the second-ranked team, Newport.

The Sailors grabbed their first lead of the game with 51 seconds

left in regulation when senior Jessica Ball scored on a four-meter

penalty shot for an 8-7 edge.

But the Knights, the defending CIF Division I champions who

defeated Newport four times last year, answered with a goal on an

outside shot by Grace Reynolds with 25 seconds remaining, which sent

the game to overtime.

Newport Harbor regained the lead 55 seconds into the first

overtime period. Junior Anne Belden fed Taylor in set and Taylor

fired a backhand shot for a 9-8 lead.

With 1:40 left in the first overtime, senior goalie Terin Cottam

stuffed Jillian Kraus’ shot. Cottam fired a pass to Taylor, who sent

the ball to Belden and Belden drew an ejection. Wheeler scored on the

six-on-five opportunity, taking the assist from Conway with 1:23

left.

Foothill did not score again until 36 seconds were left in the

second overtime when Reynolds put in her fifth goal on a power play.

The Knights went three for five when they had the player advantage,

while Newport was four of five.

“It’s not about statistics; it’s about being a team,” said Ball,

Newport’s co-captain who guarded Kraus, a U.S. junior national team

member. “We might have been underdogs, but we came through because we

were united.

“How big is this? This is insane,” Ball continued. “This is for my

freshman, sophomore and junior year. This is for it all. This is to

show that we are competition and we can do it. That’s what we came to

show today and we did it.”

Foothill Coach Dave Mikesell said the difference-maker proved to

be momentum, and the fact that Newport possessed it in the fourth

quarter. The Sailors appeared to grab the momentum when they caught

the Knights, 5-5. Conway threw sort of a hook shot from near half

tank. The arching ball hit the post and went in with 2:40 left in

regulation.

“This is huge,” said Conway, who also provided three assists and

drew two four-meter fouls and two ejections. “I think everyone was

doubting us ... We just showed everyone we could do it.”

In addition to Conway’s performance, Newport also received stellar

defense from Ball and goalies Kim Housepian (six save) and Cottam

(four), who played the second half and the two overtime periods. Ball

helped hold Kraus to two goals.

Ball scored two goals, as did Wheeler, while Belden and Taylor

added one goal each.

“I don’t believe that I played to the best of my ability,” Kraus

said. “I was being pressured and they have great players, but for me

personally, I don’t think I played well.”

Most of Newport’s players said their ability to step up in the

fourth quarter and overtime was because they were extremely

motivated. On their car windows they marked, “Beat Foothill,” and

they also wrote the No. 50 with an X over it.

The Sailors also said Mikesell did not respect their team because

of a quote in an Orange County newspaper. He said he was misquoted,

and said his words were taken out of context when he named teams that

would give Foothill competition this season. Mikesell said he did not

name the Sailors because he was asked which teams other than Newport

would be tough for the Knights.

“Newport Harbor, they have a great team,” Mikesell said. “Newport

should be No. 1.”

*--*

Sea View League

Newport Harbor 10, Foothill 9, OT

Score by Quarters

Foothill 1 2 1 4 0 1 -- 9

Newport 1 2 0 5 2 0 -- 10

Foothill -- Reynolds 5, Kraus 2, Miller 1,

Rovenger 1. Saves -- Krumpholz 8. Newport

-- Conway 4, Ball 2, Wheeler 2, Belden 1,

Taylor 1. Saves -- Housepian 6, Cottam 4.

*--*