Griffins Keep Pace with Two Easy Victories

The Los Alamitos girls water polo team got off to a comfortable start in the Irvine Southern California Women’s Water Polo Championships with two solid wins on the first day. But the Griffins have more at stake than the tournament title.

The Irvine tournament is the final big event before the CIF-SS playoffs, and the end results will have a direct impact on the CIF-SS playoff seedings. Every team in the CIF-SS Division I top ten rankings are among the field with the Griffins ranked at No. 2 behind Dos Pueblos. The field of 32 also includes many other division top ten teams as well as some strong San Diego Section teams.

So, the Griffins are not going to take their 19-5 and 17-5 wins over Long Beach Millikan and Murrieta Valley, on Thursday at all lightly. The Griffins know that the next two days could go a long way in setting them up for a deep playoff run.

“It’s important to finish this tournament strong because the CIF seedings generally reflect how this tournament finishes up,” Griffin coach Dave Carlson said.

Los Alamitos improved to 20-2 overall with their two wins on Thursday. They opened the day with the win over Long Beach Millikan led by three goals apiece from Ella Weber, Stephanie Mutafyan, Rachel Fattal and Cory Dodson. Marley Delaney and Kellie Guerin each added two goals.

The Griffins took control of the game early with full-tank pressure defense and quick-strike counter attacks on offense. Guerin and Delaney each scored in the first minute, and the Griffins took a 7-0 lead after the first quarter. Starting goalie Savanna Smith saw limited action as she was replaced in the second half with the Griffins leading 11-3 at halftime. Reserve goalie Nikki Quinn played the third quarter and was credited with four saves.

The Griffins defeated Murrieta Valley, the No. 2 team in the CIF-SS Division 3 rankings, 15-7, in their second game on Thursday. Fattal had five goals and Dodson added four for the Griffins. Mutafyan had three goals, while Delaney and Becca Corb added two and one, respectively.

The two wins keep the Griffins out of Friday’s early games. It also means they will have to play just one game on Friday. They will face either Laguna Beach or Santa Margarita at 6 p.m. at Santa Margarita High. Carlson said he hopes to see his team continue to sharpen its execution, while also holding its possible hold on the No. 2 seed in the playoffs. For his team, he knows they have their own focus.

“The tangible goal for me is to get to the final four, but the girls always have bigger goals,” Carlson said.