CdM down, Sailors move up

In the water last season, one thing was clear when teams played the Corona del Mar High girls’ water polo team.

The Sea Kings usually owned the pool. Only one team managed to beat CdM that season and it happened twice.

These days, three teams have already defeated the Sea Kings. The season is just six games old and the Sea Kings are at .500, a far cry from their undefeated start last season.

When CdM plays host to the Holiday Cup today, defending its championship isn’t the goal.

“Make the top four,” CdM Coach Aaron Chaney said his players decided where they want to finish in the two-day, 16-team tournament.

Third or fourth place is more likely for CdM (3-3) than the top two spots. The Sea Kings aren’t one of the favorites to win the event due to losing five starters to graduation.

Expected to make a run at the title again is co-host Newport Harbor (4-0), the top seed in Group A. The Sailors, ranked No. 2 in the CIF Southern Section Division I preseason coaches’ poll, finished runner-up last season at the Holiday Cup.

The other tournament favorite is top-ranked Dos Pueblos of Goleta, the team that beat CdM twice last season, including in the section championship match.

“We’d like a chance to play Dos Pueblos again,” said Chaney, whose team lost to the Chargers in the season opener earlier this month.

For another shot at Dos Pueblos, the Sea Kings have to go 2-0 today. CdM, seeded No. 3 in Group B, opens tournament play 11:45 a.m. against Carlsbad from the San Diego Section.

Chaney hopes CdM can meet Dos Pueblos in the semifinals at Newport Harbor on Thursday. After losing at Newport Harbor in the Battle of the Bay on Dec. 18, Chaney expects the talented Sailors to reach the semifinals.

So does Newport Harbor Coach Bill Barnett. The Sailors open at home today with Beckman at 8:30 a.m. Newport Harbor should easily win.

The second game is a different story.

“We’re either getting Long Beach Wilson or Santa Barbara, and we’ve played Long Beach Wilson in an extremely competitive game,” said Barnett, whose Sailors held on to beat Long Beach Wilson, 12-9, at Belmont Plaza on Dec. 16. “Either team could’ve won.”

Newport Harbor is the one squad that can possibly give Dos Pueblos a game.

Kaleigh Gilchrist and Kate Klippert lead the Sailors’ attack. Newport Harbor is averaging more than 11 goals per game and its closest match was the one against Long Beach Wilson, ranked No. 4 in Division I.

Long Beach Wilson is also the third team to beat CdM this season. The early schedule for the No. 7-ranked Sea Kings has been taxing, as they’ve played four of the five top teams in the top division.

The competition will only intensify at the Holiday Cup, which the Sea Kings have won in two of the previous three seasons.

“If we get past the first game, next up would most likely be Palos Verdes, which is the No. 1 team in Division II,” Chaney said. “We just want to have some good games and play consistently because [playing tough teams] has kind of affected our confidence a little bit.”

The Sea Kings will try to clear their heads above water.