Boys water polo loses to La Serna at South Bay Tournament

On Friday, Oct. 6, the Samo’s varsity boy’s water polo team lost in the South Bay Tournament to La Serna High School. The final score was 4-9.The face of the team was very different than during their victorious game vs. Culver City High School, Samo’s main rival, on Oct. 5. By halftime, the score was 2-6 and Samo fans in the audience were on the edge of their seats, hoping for a comeback that was prevented by the La Serna goalie.In the third quarter, La Serna held up a strong defense and Samo did not score any goals, not for a lack of trying. It ended at 2-8.Coach Matthew Flanders reinvigorated the team in the break between the third and fourth quarter, but for this game, it was too late.Samo, with a new energy, scored two more goals before the buzzer rang at a score of 4-9. When asked about what the team will focus on improving for the next tournament, Flanders had a simple answer.“Shooting, shooting and more shooting. We need to put more of our shots away,” Flanders said.Team captain, Sawyer Koetters (’19), explained Samo’s performance in the tournament.“La Serna is a really good team. Some of our opportunities that were 50/50 just didn’t go for us,” he said.Samo’s next home game is on Oct. 17 vs. Torrance High School. The team is still undefeated and thriving in league.