Sea Kings buckle down to earn first victory

CORONA DEL MAR — The exchange midway through the third quarter was short.

The Santa Barbara High girls’ water polo team had just drawn an exclusion, its sixth of the game, and Coach Mark Walsh called timeout.

“We’ve had no ejections this game,” Corona del Mar Coach Aaron Chaney said, facetiously, to the referees. “Thank you.”

Walsh, however, was quick to put things in perspective.

“You’re winning by five goals, though,” Walsh pointed out.

And Walsh was right. Even as the Dons piled up the six-on-five opportunities, the Sea Kings defense stuffed every one. In the end, it produced an 8-1 nonleague victory for CdM, the Sea Kings’ first of the season, on Saturday morning.

Visiting Santa Barbara finished scoreless in nine six-on-five chances, while CdM was an efficient two for two.

“We had pretty good six-on-five defense,” said CdM junior Heather Van Hiel, who had four goals and made five steals. “I think we talked a lot more than in our last two games, and that’s always important. Plus, having KB [junior Kate Baldoni] in the goal, if they shoot from the outside, we’re confident in her blocking it.”

The Sea Kings (1-2) had suffered two tough losses to begin their season — a 10-9 four-overtime setback to Dos Pueblos on Nov. 30 and Tuesday’s 7-6 loss to Long Beach Wilson.

Chaney said it was the first time in 26 years of coaching that he’d had a team start with back-to-back losses.

But CdM, ranked No. 5 in the CIF Southern Section Division I coaches’ preseason poll, came out very fired up against Santa Barbara (1-1), the No. 5-ranked team in Division II.

“I think they were definitely wanting to get that first win under their belt,” Chaney said.

Van Hiel scored from two meters with 2:07 left in the first quarter, then sophomore Margot Money fired a five-meter goal cross-cage with 10 seconds left in the quarter. Van Hiel scored again on the Sea Kings’ first possession of the second quarter, and sophomore Kate Berry followed with a goal after a cross-pool pass from junior teammate Elise Molnar.

Van Hiel, CdM’s only returning starter from last year, scored twice more in the quarter, including a goal from five meters at the buzzer after she was fouled. The last goal gave the Sea Kings a comfortable 6-0 halftime lead.

“Heather practices every day with every bit of effort and focus,” Chaney said. “You just don’t get people who practice like that all the time. It’s amazing. It’s hard as a player to drive yourself every single day, and she does it. That’s the reason why she’s successful when she plays, and that work ethic is a great example for her teammates.”

Santa Barbara notched its only goal early in the third quarter, on a five-meter penalty shot from senior Emily Martin. But Corona del Mar added a rebound goal from Molnar, then goalie Baldoni decided to get herself on the board.

She scored from past half-pool with two seconds left in the quarter, giving the Sea Kings their eighth goal.

“That was fun,” said Money, who had four steals in the game.

Senior Carissa Dice had two steals for the Sea Kings, and Molnar and senior Corinne Treadaway each had nice field blocks to stop Santa Barbara power-play opportunities.

“We had a couple blocks, stole a couple of passes,” Chaney said. “But we shouldn’t be getting kicked out nine times. As much as we stress defense in practice, we shouldn’t be getting caught behind people and getting kicked out.”

Still, the first win of the season was definitely welcome for the Sea Kings.

“It was good for our girls,” Chaney said. “It’s always good to get your first victory behind you. You get a little more confidence.”

Nonleague

Corona del Mar 8, Santa Barbara 1

SCORE BY QUARTERS

SB – Martin 1. Saves – Jenkins 4, Brooks 2.

CdM – Van Hiel 4, Berry 1, Molnar 1, Money 1, Baldoni 1. Saves – Baldoni 7.

MATT SZABO may be reached at (714) 966-4614 or by e-mail at matthew.szabo@latimes.com.