La Canada Executes Coast-to-Coast Run

La Canada High, after playing Southern Section Division III rival Bell Gardens on Wednesday, hopped a plane for Annapolis, Md., to compete in the Annapolis High School water polo tournament.

The Spartans, ranked No. 3 in Division III, arrived in Maryland this morning and open the 10-team tournament tonight against Annapolis. La Canada is the only California team in a field consisting mostly of East Coast schools. The Spartans return home Sunday night.

La Canada’s invitation was extended to Coach Larry Naeve last summer when he visited his son, Brendan, a former La Canada player who starts for Navy, which is located in Annapolis.

“There are a bunch of teams I have never heard of,” Naeve said of the tournament field. “But the team is excited about going.”

Naeve said planning the trip has been difficult. Before receiving the go-ahead, he had to get approval from several governing high school organizations-- including the Maryland Interscholastic Federation, the CIF and the Southern Section--as well as the La Canada Unified School District and the Rio Hondo League.

“Little did I know it would be so difficult,” Naeve said. “This whole thing started in June and we didn’t find out we’d be going for sure until after school started.”

Naeve had to juggle La Canada’s schedule, entering the junior varsity team in some tournaments so the varsity team would not exceed the Southern Section limit of three.