After a long few months marked by tough losses and key injuries, WSC water polo ended their CIF run on a high note. The team traveled to Laguna Hills to face Mission Viejo High School on November 5th, an Orange County powerhouse seeded number one in Division 5. The Gauls put up a strong fight against their opponents but fell short 18-11.
The season began with bad news; star player Max Fargo (‘21) was out for the year with a dislocated knee. Within a few weeks, last year’s starting goalie Gabriel Hong (‘20) suffered a knee injury and was also shut down for the season. The losses meant that Malachi Cassel (‘20) was the team’s only senior, and the many sophomores and juniors were forced into major roles.
New team leaders had excellent seasons and helped rally the team in the second half of the playoff game. Starting wing player Winston Li (‘21) scored three goals, and set player Aidan Gutierrez (‘23) scored Webb’s other eight. Excellent team defense helped the Gauls rebound from a brutal 16-2 first half. Webb outscored Mission Viejo in the final two quarters 9-2.
Matthew Gooch (‘22) said, “This was an exciting way to end our season. Even though it’s sad we lost, I think we’re definitely going to come back a lot stronger next year.”
Because it will be comprised mostly of juniors and seniors and all returning players should be healthy, the team is looking forward to a much stronger 2020 season.
