DAILY PILOT HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:

With a last name like Money, Corona del Mar High junior Margot Money has heard plenty of jokes and silly puns.

“They’ll sing that song, ‘Money, money, money,’ ” said Money, referring to the O’Jays’ song, “For the love of money.” “I’ll get asked the question: ‘Are you rich because your last name is Money.’ ”

Last week, during the Holiday Cup girls’ water polo tournament, the Sea Kings’ driver lived up to her last name in the sense that she was so money when it came to scoring goals. She almost could identify with one of the funny lines from the movie, “Swingers.”

“You’re so money and you don’t even know it,” the character Trent, played by Vince Vaughn, tells Mike, who’s played by Jon Favreau.

But this line for Corona del Mar’s Money has nothing to do with getting a girl’s phone number and waiting for the right time to call her up. It has more do with her realizing that she can capitalize on the scoring opportunities that come her way.

She did that in the Sea Kings’ game against Back Bay rival Newport Harbor for the Holiday Cup championship. Money scored three goals in CdM’s 5-3 win at Newport Harbor on New Year’s Eve.

The win kept the Sea Kings undefeated, improving to 10-0.

But this victory was a bit different from the first time CdM beat Newport Harbor, 6-3, on Dec. 20. In that game, Money didn’t score, missing the cage twice when she had an open shot.

In the Holiday Cup title game, Money had more opportunities to take a shot from the outside. This time, she cashed in.

“It brought back the memory [of missing those shots],” Money said of what she thought when she had outside-shot opportunities on Dec. 31. “I was thinking, ‘I have to make this.” And, I did make it.”

That wasn’t the only time Money used the past as motivation. Money, like the rest of the Sea Kings, want to win the CIF Southern Section Division I title. They were so close last year, when they lost a three-goal lead to Newport Harbor in the championship game.

Money said that title match was her favorite athletic moment. Of course, she didn’t like the loss, but just the experience of playing for a CIF title helped her, she said.

“It was such a great experience,” Money said. “It was probably the funnest game I have played in.”

Though the loss provided Money with extra incentive this season, there was still something missing. She never lacked during practices, actually shooting well against standout goalie Kate Baldoni, CdM Coach Aaron Chaney said.

But Chaney wanted Money to transfer the efficiency in game situations.

“She strugged a bit at the beginning of the season and I talked to her to be more confident,” Chaney said of Money, who scored twice in the Sea Kings’ 8-3 semifinal win over Foothill. “[The Holiday Cup] was a big breakthrough for her. She has a good shot. She scored seven goals against Newport because they kept leaving her open to shoot.”

In addition to Chaney encouraging her to shoot, Money also uses the advice from one of her older brothers. Tom Money played water polo at CdM and is now competing for USC, which recently won the NCAA Division I championship.

He’ll go to her younger sister’s games and offer a few pointers.

He was one of the reasons Margot chose water polo as her main sport. She dabbled in tennis, but watching her older brothers, including the eldest Money, Tom, play water polo made her want to jump in the pool and compete too.

She likes the game, but at CdM, she said she mostly enjoys the team aspect. With the Sea Kings, she’s not the go-to scorer. CdM doesn’t really have one dominant scorer, instead use various threats on offense. The Sea Kings’ defense also provides opportunities to score on the counterattack.

When Money has an open shot, she knows to shoot it. If she misses, she trusts her teammates will give her another opportunity or create a different one for another player.

But after the Holiday Cup, she has the confidence she can be money when shooting for a goal.