CMAC takes bronze in Kap7 tournament

The Costa Mesa Aquatics 12U co-ed water polo team continued a successful season with another third-place finish in the Gold Division of the Kap7 tournament, one of the year’s largest tourneys around Orange County, Feb. 14.

“We played very well,” Coach Dustin Serrano said after day one of group play with wins of 19-1 against Newport Beach and 23-8 against Sharks from Moorpark. “The one-two punch from Gavin Fisher and Landon Akerstrom resulted in 30 goals between the two of them. Our goalie, Madilynn Ambrose, was very close to a shutout in the first game and was a dominant force in the defense along with Everett Rowden whose tenacious play kept the scoring down.”

Day two started with a 22-5 win against United from Los Alamitos, but was followed by a tough 12-9 loss against American River, who later went on to win the tournament.

The third-place game was played against Chelsea Piers from Stamford, Conn. CMAC prevailed after a close first half with a 12-7 win.

“The team did an excellent job, I was especially proud of Kira Anderson and William Fry whose tireless counterattacks on the wings kept the Chelsea Piers team on the defense at all times,” Serrano said. “I was also very excited to see a breakout effort from Evan McElwee who scored twice in the last quarter and Dharma Andreas’ game-winning goal.”

CMAC also entered a team with an average age of 16 in the 19U division that placed 13th, according to Coach Sam Figueroa and a 14U team, led by Coach Cody Serrano, that placed in the top 10 of 28 teams.

— Reader submission