Daily Pilot High School Female Athlete of the Week: Bella is big-time for Breakers

Bella Baldridge was born on Oct. 31, and that’s turned into something fun for the Laguna Beach High senior.

Last Halloween, she turned 18 years old.

“I used to not like it as a kid, but now I really like it,” Baldridge said. “It’s kind of a fun little party to have on Halloween.”

Something that’s downright scary is how dominant the Breakers have been during Baldridge’s four years on varsity. After helping Laguna win CIF Southern Section Division 1 titles as a freshman and sophomore, the lefty is trying for her third CIF championship in four years this season.

The Breakers (9-0), the top-ranked team in Division 1, have positioned themselves well. After rolling to their fourth straight Holiday Cup tournament victory last week, they beat Foothill, 11-2, on the road Thursday in a key nonleague game. Believe it or not, that nine-goal margin was actually Laguna’s closest margin of the season so far.

The play of Baldridge, who came into the week leading the Breakers in goals (30), assists (29) and steals (19), has been key. She’s one of three team captains this year, along with Stanford-bound Aria Fischer and Cal-bound Claire Sonne.

Baldridge, who had four goals, two assists and two steals in a 14-2 rout of Orange Lutheran in the Holiday Cup title game, has been on fire. It led to a telling remark to Laguna Beach Coach Ethan Damato after the tournament ended.

“One of the college coaches commented to me that it seems like she’s on a bit of a mission this season,” Damato said. “I thought that was a pretty cool comment, and that is kind of the way she’s playing. She’s playing the game very aggressively, and it’s been a lot of fun to watch.”

Baldridge is quick, which helps spark the Breakers’ counterattack and general speed of play, and she’s also a gifted passer. Coming into the season, she already had the program record for assists, a total that’s now up to 259 for her four-year varsity career.

As far as assists in one game, Baldridge tied the program record as a sophomore on the biggest stage possible, recording seven as the Breakers beat Foothill in the 2015 Division 1 title match.

“I love passing the ball, I love giving assists,” Baldridge said. “You know when you get the good goosebumps, the chills feeling? I get that more when I make a good pass and the person scores. I love doing that so much. I used to love doing it with Makenzie Fischer, and I love doing it with Aria Fischer now. You know if you pass them the ball, they will put it in the back of the net. It’s really fun; it’s really good times.”

Yes, playing with the two Fischer sisters has been fun, as well as watching them make the Olympics this past summer in Brazil. How many girls can say that they have played high school water polo with two Olympians? Bella Baldridge can.

Aria Fischer, Damato and Laguna junior goalie Thea Walsh were all gone last month at the FINA Youth World Championships, but upon their return the Breakers have not missed a beat. The trio didn’t miss much in terms of game action, just one game, but when they got back they may have noticed a more aggressive Baldridge.

The girl who usually sets everyone up has also improved her shot.

“I’ve learned that in order for me to make the right pass, I have to be an attacker at the same time,” she explained. “[Otherwise] no one’s going to see me as a threat, so they’ll double-team Aria. I have to be able to take that shot. It’s also nice having Aria there, because it is a psychological edge. She’s a gold medal Olympian, who’s also an amazing player. It does give you more of an opportunity to shoot and score, because they are really focused on her.

“She’s been so great. She’s been so unselfish. She works so hard in and out of the pool. She’s always the one that’s leading the swim sets, pushing us whenever we do counter drills, defense or offense. She’s the most hard-working person that I’ve ever met in my entire life.”

Baldridge’s life in water polo has extended a long time now. Her older sister Mackenzie and older brother Cade also both played at Laguna Beach High under Damato. That might not be surprising when you consider her father, Scott, played the sport at Corona del Mar High and later at UC Irvine and UCLA.

But Bella said it was her mother, Cheryl, who ultimately got her into water polo at the age of 5 for ocean safety purposes. Instead of doing Junior Lifeguards, the family did water polo.

Bella moved up through the ranks of club water polo, often coached by her father and the Fischers’ dad Erich, who is himself a former Olympic water polo player.

At 5-foot-5, Bella has not grown into the biggest player, but she’s also not about to use that as an excuse.

“When you’re my size, you kind of have to be a little faster,” Baldridge said. “You’ve got to learn a lot of technique. But at the same time, I am happy with my size, because I have to have a better technique than the bigger girls. There’s some athletes like Aria or Paige Hauschild that are tall and have amazing technique. I wasn’t fortunate enough to be that tall ... but I’ll never blame any of my kickouts or my mistakes on my size. I’ll blame it more on my technique, if I swam around the wrong side or didn’t have my hips up.”

It’s a smart way of thinking by a smart young woman, one who has a 4.2 grade-point average. The only thing undecided is where she will go to college. She could join the Fischer sisters at Stanford, but she’s also considering Harvard.

Wherever she goes to college, she wants to end her high school senior year with another CIF championship after Laguna lost in the semifinals last year to Foothill. And if the Breakers can get back to that CIF championship game, that Saturday night under the lights at Irvine’s Woollett Aquatics Center, then Baldridge will undoubtedly be a big reason why.

“She’s just a really smart player,” Damato said. “I think she’s a naturally intelligent player, and this year she’s definitely stepped up in those aspects for us. She’s taken a little bit more on her plate, both as a captain and in the water as well, as far as matchups, scoring and whatever we need to get done.”

Scary indeed for the opposition.

Bella Baldridge

Born: Oct. 31, 1998

Hometown: Laguna Beach

Height: 5-foot-5

Sport: Water Polo

Year: Senior

Coach: Ethan Damato

Favorite food: Pasta

Favorite movie: “Young Frankenstein”

Favorite athletic moment: Helping Laguna Beach’s 12-and-under team beat Newport to win the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics title in 2009 at Stanford.

Week in review: Baldridge’s all-around play helped Laguna Beach win its fourth straight Holiday Cup title last weekend, routing Orange Lutheran, 14-2, in the title game.