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Dowden named Valley League girls water polo player of the year

The Valley League girls water coaches placed four Fallbrook players on the all-league squads.

Taylor Dowden was named as the league's player of the year, and the first team also included Jordann Heimback and Ariana Young. Jazmin Patterson was a second-team selection.

"It showed the depth of our team and what we did this year," Fallbrook coach Sean Redmond said of Fallbrook receiving four of the 14 total all-league berths.

Fallbrook had a 5-0 record in Valley League competition to win the league championship. Ramona's second-place 4-1 record reflects the Bulldogs' loss to Fallbrook. Ramona and Valley Center each had two players on the seven-member first team. Fallbrook's overall record of 21-10 includes two CIF playoff wins and a CIF Division I championship game loss to Vista.

During the season, Dowden led the team with 92 goals, 43 assists, 153 steals, and 43 ejections drawn, and her 16 blocks placed second among Fallbrook players. "She pretty much led the team in every category this year," Redmond said.

"She dominated throughout the season. One coach put it that she was the difference-maker in the final outcome of the game that we played them," Redmond said. "When you look at her full body of work it definitely showed that she was well-deserving of getting that honor."

Dowden was a utility player who was placed at the wing, driver, and set positions during the season. "Taylor was all over," Redmond said. "She could just go in and it didn't matter where she was."

In water polo, an ejection or exclusion is a 20-second penalty which requires the team committing the foul to play short-handed during that time or until a power play goal is scored. "She knew how to draw the ejections and draw the fouls," Redmond said of Dowden.

Heimback was Fallbrook's goalkeeper and had 268 saves and 133 steals. "She was our last line of defense and helped us to be able to have five shutouts and tie the CIF record for that," Redmond said.

The 2015-16 Warriors became the third team in CIF San Diego Section history to have five shutouts in a season. Otay Ranch had five shutouts both in 2007-08 and in 2011-12.

Heimback also had 32 assists, which placed second on the team. "That just shows you the strength she has of 1) being able to stop it, and 2) being able to recognize and make the long pass," Redmond said.

Young led the team with 20 blocks and also had 13 goals and 30 assists. "Ariana played a very difficult position in basically playing defense in the set and was one of the girls we counted on to go from one end of the pool to the other," Redmond said.

Patterson was second among Warrior players with 50 goals. "Jazmin was tenacious," Redmond said.

Patterson played primarily the set position. "She could also be moved to other positions in the field and do just as well," Redmond said.

The CIF championship match includes a Sportsmanship Award presented to one member of each team, and Patterson was Fallbrook's selection. "Very unselfish, always wanted to do what was best for the team at the time," Redmond said. "Everything she did for the team and the sacrifices that she made showed in her playing."

Last year, Heimback was the Valley League player of the year and Dowden was also on the league's first team while Young was on the Valley League second team. Emma Thomas was a Fallbrook High School junior last year when she was placed on the first team and Claudia Oppermann earned second-team honors as a 2014-15 senior. Oppermann was the Warriors' only senior last year, but Thomas and her sister are military dependents and did not rejoin the Fallbrook team for 2015-16. "Losing the players we did last year was not easy," Redmond said. "This year, the girls stepped up."

This year, all four of Fallbrook's all-league players are seniors. "It's always tough," Redmond said. "Every year is a different crop and every year you're going to have players step up and play better than the year before and that's all you can hope for."

 

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