Burroughs girls’ water polo remains in hunt for Pacific League title
BURBANK — One major strength for the Burroughs High girls’ water polo team throughout the season has been the consistency of Kate Wilke guarding the cage.
It’s led to a resurgence for the Indians, who are in search of winning a Pacific League championship.
Wilke gave the Indians a big boost Tuesday, as she made 12 saves to help second-seeded Burroughs post a 10-4 victory against third-seeded Arcadia in a league tournament semifinal at Burbank High.
For good measure, Wilke stopped a pair of five-meter shots.
Burroughs (14-8, 6-1 in league) will meet top-seeded Crescenta Valley (24-4, 7-0) in the league championship match at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the same location. Crescenta Valley gained a share of the league title Tuesday with a 23-6 win against fourth-seeded Glendale.
“When you are a goalie, you have to be alert and focused at all times,” said Wilke, a senior. “Watch the ball all the time and know where the shooters like to go. You make some big saves and you feel good about your team, plus we have a shot at [sharing] league.”
Arcadia (10-9, 4-3) peppered Wilke in both halves. Wilke turned away most of the shots attempts, including stopping Lauren Sargent twice on five-meter shots.
“Those are exhilarating when you can stop five-meters,” Wilke said. “It’s just you against the shooter.
“You have to be able to guess right. You have to be able to put yourself in position to see you making the save.”
Burroughs held a 4-1 lead after the first quarter.
A minute into the second quarter, Wilke stopped Sargent.
Burroughs then received a pair of goals from Lizzy Wrobel to grab a 6-2 halftime lead. The Indians received two first-quarter goals from Gwen Turla and one each from Cameron Flores and Dominique Silva.
“Kate needed to be sharp and you have to give her credit for coming up big,” Burroughs Coach Jake Cook said. “When you have her in goal, you have a chance to win.”
Burroughs held a 7-4 lead after the third quarter before Wilke faced Sargent in another five-meter encounter. Wilke stymied Sargent again with 6:21 left in the fourth quarter.
Burroughs closed out the scoring with three goals in a four-minute stretch. The Indians got goals from Bianca Sanchez, Turla and Sofia Lozano. Silva scored a goal for the Indians in the third quarter.
“We’re excited about being able to play for a league championship,” Cook said. “We’re motivated and we know it will be another good test for us going into the playoffs.”
