By Faye Witherall & Olivia Nouriani
Tiger Staff
The varsity boys’ water polo team concluded their rugged preseason Tuesday with a 3-10 loss on the road against Santiago High School.
The tough early season games, although disappointing, have prepared the squad for Rio Hondo play, which begins October 7 against Monrovia High School.
“Our record isn’t an accurate reflection of how we’ve been playing,” sophomore Vaughn Huelsman said. “Our coach set up tough preseason games for a reason: to improve. Our record should turn around come league season once we work out our recurring issues.”
Tuesday’s game continued a trend for the Tigers: the team kept the game close early, but saw the match slip away in the fourth quarter. The Tigers closely trailed Santiago 4-2 in the third quarter, but were unable to gain momentum offensively. As exhaustion got the better of them, they could no longer beat back the Sharks’ aggressive offense.
Captain Ryan Rodriguez led the Tigers with a pair of goals, and senior Court Blake also netted one.
The team travels to Monrovia on October 7th, seeking redemption and a return to CIF playoffs.