Northwood junior Michael Abshier takes a shot in Friday’s match vs. Trabuco Hills. (Photos courtesy Troy Witt and Jerry Cheng, Northwood water polo).
Northwood High school’s boys water polo team had a strong second half and defeated Trabuco Hills 15-10 in the season opener Friday at Northwood.
The teams were tied at halftime.
Junior co-captain Michael Abshier had a solid overall game with nine goals and seven steals. Sophomore Dean Witt and co-captain senior Iacopo Cagnoni each scored three goals for Northwood.
To see the slide show, click on the first photo:
Freshmen Brandon Bui and Alex Chin both made their varsity debuts. Bui had three steals, while Chin had one assist and one steal.
“Senior Aditya Hari had a good first game in between the posts with 10 saves and one assist,” said Coach Kyle Kim-E.
“I think we had some nerves going into the game, which is completely normal and expected for the first game. I think those nerves led to a slow start for our team, but after some minor adjustments we were able to capitalize on a six goal third quarter. That was the biggest difference in the game.
“This is probably the youngest varsity group Northwood has ever had. We have four seniors, two juniors, two sophomores, and three freshmen. So, there is a lot of inexperience for our group at the high school level and we are also working on developing team chemistry both in and out of the water.
“With that being said though, I love the group that we have this year; they are all dedicated, determined and hard working players. I know that we all understand that we have a lot to work on, but I feel like we are at a good starting point. The team chemistry will come in time.”
Northwood’s next match is Tuesday at Canyon.
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