Newport Harbor girls’ water polo clinches second in league with win over Huntington Beach

The Newport Harbor High girls’ water polo team won the battle for second place in the Sunset League on Wednesday.

The Sailors played solid defense in the first half and their offensive surge in the third quarter helped the hosts earn a 7-4 victory over Huntington Beach on senior night.

The Sailors (13-8, 4-1 in league) got on the board 20 seconds into the game with a goal from Sarah Barker, but Huntington Beach (15-8, 3-2) stormed back 20 seconds later with a goal from Courtney Heydorf.

Nicca Falah would give the Oilers the lead, but with less than a minute left, Karis Couch would tie the game with a goal for Newport Harbor. The scored would stay tied until the Sailors went on the offensive attack in the third period, scoring four goals in less than two minutes.

“I was really impressed with the defense,” said Newport Harbor coach Brian Melstrom, who saw Erin Ross make 10 saves for the Sailors. “I think we executed our game plan very well. I think our offense sputtered a little bit at times, but we surged in the third quarter and got a couple of easier goals. We got ourselves in better position compared to the other three quarters to strike. We put the ball away when we needed to put it away.

“This game is a good momentum win for us going forward into Division 2. This was critical for seeding. That win should secure us for a number one or a number two seed in the playoffs, which set us up for a slightly easier first-round game.”

Newport Harbor is ranked No. 10 in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 and 2 poll, and it finds out Saturday what division it will play in the postseason. The top eight teams will compete in Division 1, and one of those teams will be league champion Los Alamitos.

The Sailors went on a 4-0 run in the third period, starting with a goal from Kili Skibby, which was immediately followed by another goal from Barker. She broke away and scored after some strong defense from her teammates.

“I think the keys in the third quarter was really hard defense,” said Barker, whose two goals tied Jessica Lynch for the team lead. “We had to have good communication, calling back if we needed help, and on the offensive end, finding the open girl and working with your team, even when you aren’t going to get the goal. By just finding that girl and working as a team.”

Lynch would follow suit by scoring the next two goals for the Sailors.

Huntington Beach would finally score on a goal by freshman Morgan O’Connell, but Kaela Whelan would response right back for the Sailors with a goal. Falah would score her second goal for the Oilers, but Newport Harbor’s offense was too much. Marina Hyham had 10 saves for the Oilers.

“We knew that our defense was doing well,” Lynch said. “Not everything was going our way on offense. We just needed to ramp things up a little bit. I think we did that.”

MANNY ALVAREZ is a contributor to Times Community News. Follow him on Twitter: @MAlvarez02