Girls’ water polo defeats Marlboro 5-4

In a close game against Marlboro High School on February 13, Samo was able to pull out a win with a score of 5-4 and finish the Ocean League season undefeated.Throughout the match, Samo and Marlboro battled for the lead ending the first quarter with a 0-1 lead for Marlboro. After a last minute score from Samo captain Mackie Kennedy (’14) in the second quarter, the game was tied 1-1 at the half.Overcoming this setback, Samo gained momentum in the third quarter with a goal, first from Caoimhe Whitebloom (’15) and then Kennedy. As the fourth quarter began with a score of 3-2, the game became an aggressive one.Players Iliana Arick-Harvey (’14) and Kennedy were both ejected for aggression, but Samo was able to keep its focus, with Whitebloom scoring again and Lauren La Borde (’14) scoring Samo’s last goal.At the end of the game, Samo’s defense was able to keep Marlboro at 4 points, ensuring a win.“The highlight is that we won league, even if we just couldn’t make anything work,” Whitebloom said. “We just weren’t clicking as a team today.”According to coach Matthew Flanders, the team really picked it up after the half. Despite this, Flanders and the rest of the team agree that they could have done much better.“They started moving more on the offensive end, which created the opportunity to score,” Flanders said. “The game was really too close and we have to get motivated as we move into CIF playoffs.”Kennedy says that she has mixed feelings about the win.“It’s great to finish league undefeated, but we have to get our momentum back if we want to do well in CIF,” Kennedy said.schetty@thesamohi.com