Foothill Slows Down Wines, Beats Santa Ana Valley in Water Polo

Todd Wines might be the best player in the league, but Foothill proved Wednesday that it had the best team as the Knights cruised to a 13-7 victory over Santa Ana Valley in a Century League water polo match at Foothill High School.

Foothill (13-8, 4-0 in league), the sixth-ranked team in Orange County, clinched at least a tie for the league championship with the victory. It is the first league title in four years for the Knights.

Santa Ana Valley (20-4, 3-1) trailed, 7-6, at halftime, largely because of Wines’ three goals.

“I just couldn’t believe some of the shots Todd scored on today,” Foothill Coach Jim Brumm said.

Wines’ most impressive goal came midway through the first quarter when he fired a backhander from eight meters to tie the score, 3-3.

But Foothill’s balance overpowered Santa Ana Valley in the second half. Foothill’s David Hay finished with five goals and Jay Bradshaw had three. Cabot Weaver and Chad Gniffke each added two goals for the Knights.

While the balanced offense piled up second-half goals, Foothill’s unbalanced defense stifled Santa Ana Valley.

The Knights constantly double-teamed Wines in the second half, holding him to one shot on goal.

“We made a defensive adjustment in the second half, but we didn’t just want to crash down on Todd,” Brumm said. “We wanted to keep all of their offense outside; we gambled on that, and it paid off.”