Girls’ polo claims two wins

Breakers get defensive, take down Los Alamitos and Villa Park.There was one point during Tuesday’s girls’ water polo nonleague match between Laguna Beach and Los Alamitos that won the game for the host Breakers.

And it all had to do with defense.

Holding a one-goal advantage over the Division I Griffins a few minutes into the third quarter, Laguna turned up the defensive pressure, created turnovers and steals, and parlayed them into four consecutive goals to send the Breakers on their way to a 10-7 victory.

“It’s always about defense,” said Laguna coach Rick McKee, whose squad is ranked second in Division II.

The Breakers improved to 18-4 overall.

“Defense has been our focus,” he continued. “We’ve had a few players really step it up. Celia Huling has been playing great in goal, and Breanna Duplisea has been such a stabilizing force on this team. She just plays terrific defense.”

Laguna led just 5-4 early in the third quarter when freshman Anika Dries scored to make it 6-4. Teammate Jessica McKee was double-teamed in front of the Los Alamitos goal moments later, and when the ball was pushed away, Dries was there to gain possession. Her back to the goal, she turned slightly right and sent a shot into the empty goal. Griffins keeper Allie Taylor had come out of position to double-team McKee.

A minute later, McKee lobbed a shot over the head of Taylor to make it a two-goal differential. At the 3:05 mark, a shot by Laguna’s Amanda Armistead was tipped by the Griffins’ Danielle Pelke but still made its way into the goal.

Another McKee lob into the goal closed out the quarter, giving the Breakers a 9-4 edge heading into the final quarter.

They all but iced the match when freshman attacker Taylor Dodson scored 11 seconds into the fourth quarter. Her shot dropped off the cross bar and floated into the back of the goal.

With the outcome in hand, Los Alamitos, ranked fifth in Division I, scored three late goals to make it a 10-7 final.

Dries led Laguna in scoring with five goals. Jessica McKee finished with three and freshman Natasha Schulmann also scored.

In its previous outing, Laguna rallied from three goals down to defeat host Villa Park, 12-8, in another nonleague match.

It was the second time the Breakers have defeated the third-ranked Spartans (Division II) this year.

McKee scored six goals to lead Laguna offensively, but she drew two ejections and sat out all of the second quarter and half of the third quarter. It was another player, Rick McKee said, who held the team together.

“Breanna Duplisea carried us against Villa Park,” he said. “She did an amazing job defensively and shut down their top scorer. She’s not a flashy player, but a workhorse whom you can count on.”

Duplisea held Villa Park’s Cassie Churnside in check throughout the match.

Tuesday against Los Alamitos, Duplisea limited the Griffins’ senior attacker, Erin Scully, to just two goals. Scully entered the match averaging four goals per outing.

“I’m very pleased with the way all of the girls have played these last two games,” Rick McKee said. “They’ve gone up against some tough competition and have done a great job. We have some tough ones coming up, including Corona del Mar next week, so we’ll need to continue to play defense. Our offense will take care of itself.”

20060127itobz7ncDON LEACH / COASTLINE PILOT(LA)Laguna’s Anika Dries swoops in for a shot during Tuesday’s victory over Los Alamitos. Dries scored five goals. 20060127itobzincDON LEACH / COASTLINE PILOT(LA)Laguna goalie Cella Huling prepares to make a save Tuesday Los Alamitos game.