Boys’ Water Polo: Breakers’ rally falls short in semifinals

IRVINE — At the halfway point of Wednesday’s CIF Southern Section boys’ water polo Division 2 semifinal game, Laguna Beach Coach Ethan Damato presented his team with a challenge.

The Breakers weren’t their offensive selves in the opening half against Agoura at William Woollett Aquatic Center, and their lack of scoring, combined with stout defensive pressure applied by the Chargers, resulted in a 5-2 halftime deficit.

“I thought we didn’t play as well as we could have, and we were stagnant on offense,” Damato said. “We challenged our guys at halftime, and I thought they really responded. We went out in the second half and instead of waiting for things to open up on the offensive end, we made things happen.”

Laguna scored the first two goals of the second half to pull within a goal of catching Agoura, and the Breakers also got to within a single goal late in the game, but the top-ranked Chargers were able to fend off both second-half rallies to emerge with an 8-6 victory.

What did the second-half effort tell Damato about his team?

“What I already knew. They are tough-minded, scrappy guys who never give up,” he said. “They came out and played really well in the second half and got back in the game.”

Agoura, which is the division’s reigning champion, will go after a repeat title at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Woollett Aquatic Center. The Marmonte League champions will face fifth-ranked Foothill which defeated No. 2-seed Murrieta Valley, 9-8, in Wednesday’s first division semifinal.

Agoura also will be shooting for a fourth-consecutive Southern Section championship: the Chargers won back-to-back Division 4 crowns in 2010-11.

Orange Coast League champion Laguna had its season end at 19-12. The Breakers also reached the semifinal round last year in their first year in the division.

Laguna was in the semifinal round of the playoffs for the sixth time in Damato’s six years as head coach. The Breakers won consecutive Division 3 championships in 2010-11.

They were a step away from contending for another title.

“They are a really good defensive team and they played great defense in that first half,” Damato said of Agoura. “I thought we played real well after the second quarter.”

Laguna scored the first goal of the game but Agoura posted the next five goals to take a 5-1 advantage. The Breakers came out after the break to close to within 5-4 midway through the third quarter.

Junior driver Cade Baldridge drilled in a shot from the outside to make it 5-3. The possession was set up by Laguna junior driver Nolan Del Toro who blocked a shot by Agoura attacker Griffin Chappell in front of the Laguna goal. Less than a minute later, Breakers junior goalie Garret Hartley swatted away another shot attempt by Chappell. At the other end, junior utility Jack Dodson scored on a breakaway when he powered a shot past Agoura goalie Dominick Beaudine.

The Breakers had an opportunity to twice tie the score with under three minutes to play in the quarter. First, a shot by sophomore utility Jakob Colladay was deflected in the field by Agoura’s Max Hartmann and then blocked by Beaudine. The Breakers held a man-up advantage on their next possession, but a shot by Del Toro went off the right post. The Chargers’ Christopher Gardhouse collected the rebound and in transition, teammate Nicholas Vilches scored on a breakaway to extend the lead to 6-4 with 2:06 left in the quarter.

The Chargers built their lead to 7-4 with 4:03 left in the fourth quarter on Spencer Farrar’s third goal of the game but again, back came the Breakers. They got the ball back with just under two minutes and Baldridge went on to score on a penalty shot. Baldridge then came up with a steal on the next Agoura possession, sent a pass out to junior defender Aki Andersen who drove toward the Agoura goal. With a pair of defenders on him, Andersen temporarily lost the ball, calmly regained it, and then lofted a shot into the left corner of the net.

The score brought the Breakers to within 7-6 with 1:14 left.

The Chargers gained some needed breathing room when Farrar rifled a shot into the right corner for an 8-6 lead with 47 seconds left.

Laguna had taken a 1-0 lead at the 3:25 mark of the first quarter when Colladay sent a shot into the upper-right corner. Twenty seconds later, Agoura drew event on Farrar’s first score. The Chargers took the lead for good when Farrar scored again, this time with 35 seconds left in the quarter.

Laguna advanced to Wednesday’s semifinal round by taking out No. 4-seed Villa Park, 6-3, at Laguna Saturday. Baldridge, Collins, Andersen, Colladay, Del Toro and Greyson Benson all scored once for the Breakers. Hartley had seven saves.

The Breakers opened postseason play Nov. 14 and defeated visiting Damien, 9-7. Baldridge led the scoring with four goals, Colladay and Del Toro both scored twice, Dodson had a goal, two assists and five steals, and Hartley finished with seven saves.

Laguna had won 12 of its previous 15 games heading into Wednesday’s semifinal showdown.

“This is a young group of guys, with only two seniors (Trevor Collins, Rian Atherton) who I am really proud of,” Damato said. “We played a very difficult schedule but we played hard throughout the season and gained some valuable experience which I hope we can draw on for the future.”