Warrior H2O falls to Great Oak Wolfpack, 13-7

Fallbrook High School's boys water polo team won three matches and lost two in the Poway Invitational tournament Sept. 8 to 10 which opened the Warriors' season.

œWe kind of found out where we're at, said Fallbrook coach Bill Richardson.

Fallbrook opened the tournament and its season Sept. 8 at Montgomery Middle School in El Cajon. The Warriors lost to La Costa Canyon by a 12-9 score. œWe were off to a 4-1 lead first quarter and then didn't play very well the rest of the way, Richardson said.

That 4-1 lead at the end of the first quarter was reduced to a 7-6 lead at halftime, and the teams were tied at nine goals apiece after three periods.

Fallbrook's other Sept. 8 game at Montgomery Middle School was a 19-4 win over San Marcos. œIt was nice to get a win, obviously, after a loss, Richardson said.

The win was the first for Richardson as a boys water polo coach. He coached Fallbrook's varsity girls for five seasons and the Warriors' JV girls for one year, and he has also coached Fallbrook's varsity boys swim team for the past 16 years.

Fallbrook led San Marcos by a 6-1 score after the first quarter and by a 7-3 margin at halftime. The Warriors increased their lead to 13-3 by the end of the third period. Ten different Fallbrook players scored. œEverybody got a lot of playing time, Richardson said.

The Warriors' only Sept. 9 game was against Rancho Buena Vista at Montgomery Middle School. The Longhorns had a 6-3 lead entering the fourth period, but Fallbrook scored all three goals in the final regulation quarter to send the game into sudden-death overtime. Sam McDaniels scored the winning goal in overtime to give Fallbrook a 7-6 victory.

œVery pleased with that; we scrimmaged them earlier in the year and didn't do very well, Richardson said.

Bob Lamont was Fallbrook's coach last year. Lamont's final game as the Warriors' boys coach was an 8-7 loss to the Longhorns in the first round of the CIF playoffs.

Fallbrook goalkeeper Matt Vaught had six saves against the Longhorns, and Vaught's defensive heroics included blocking two five-meter penalty shots during the fourth period.

The Warriors' two Sept. 10 games were both at Poway High School. The first was a 9-5 victory over Canyon Crest. The Warriors scored the first period's only goal and had a 3-2 halftime lead before taking a 7-3 cushion by the end of the third quarter. œWe kind of pulled away a little bit, Richardson said.

Fallbrook and Mission Bay then played for the lower bracket championship, but the Buccaneers obtained that consolation honor with a 12-11 victory. The Warriors took 30 shots against Mission Bay. œWe couldn't seem to find the cage, Richardson said. œThat was the difference. They were able to make their goals and we weren't.

The Buccaneers had a 2-1 lead after one quarter; the teams were tied at 5-5 when the halftime buzzer sounded, and Fallbrook led by a 10-9 margin at the end of three periods. The game was tied before Mission Bay converted a penalty shot for the final goal.

œWe're going to get better, Lamont said.

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