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By Travis West / Staff Writer
By Travis West / Staff Writer
The Riverside City College women’s water polo team competed in the Chaffey College tournament on Sept. 14-15. The Tigers first took on the Fresno City College Rams as well as the Cerritos College Falcons.
Against the Rams, goalies Chelsea Dement and Summer Reyes shared time in net and combined for 10 saves as they shut out the Rams 18-0.
On the offensive side, the Tigers had a full team effort with 12 players scoring at least one goal.
Tying for the most goals in the game with four, were freshman Kekaikuihala McGee and Megan Guerts.
The Falcons were the second opponent of the day and the most difficult opponent of the weekend for the Tigers. The Tigers found themselves trailing 7-5 late in the second quarter until Guerts netted two goals that tied the score for the Tigers just before halftime.
Going into the second half of the game, Dement held the Falcons to two goals as the Tigers came back to beat the Falcons 13-9.
Dement had a total of 15 saves against the Falcons and Guerts finished the game with six goals, three assists and three steals.
On the morning of Sept. 15, the Tigers faced the Chaffey College Panthers.
The Tigers combined for 26 steals coming from multiple players as they beat the Panthers 15-2. Guerts once again led the team in scoring with four goals and seven steals along with Kailiponi McGee who also contributed with four goals.
They finished their weekend with a game against the Cypress College Chargers.
The Tigers came out on top once again winning 15-3 with contributions coming from multiple players.
Four players from the Tigers had a multiple goal game with the most coming from sophomore driver Emily Holmquist who finished four goals, one assist and one steal.
The Tigers have competed in two tournaments since their season began.
The women’s water polo team started their journey for a third consecutive state title on Sept. 7 at the American River Tournament in Sacramento, California.
The team competed in four games in two days, and in those four games, they came out on top in each of their contest outscoring their opponents 70-4. In their first game, the Tigers took on the American River College Beavers.
Head coach David Almquist and the Tigers took it to the Beavers, beating them 15-2.
Utility player, Megan Guerts led the team in scoring with four goals.
“Guerts led all scorers on the team averaging four goals a game,” said Almquist. “She was really quick.”
Guerts is a two time first-team All-Valley selection in water polo from Murrieta Valley High School.
Almquist said that the team played well, but still has plenty of room for improvement from the two meter mark, “We were shaky to begin with, but Tara Scheibler scored a number of goals at two meters to help us.”
Tara Scheibler is a returning sophomore player, who is going to play a major role at center forward this season.
Scheibler was productive this weekend, finishing with 10 goals and seven assists.
In their second matchup, the Tigers faced the San Joaquin Delta College Mustangs. The Mustangs could only score one goal against the goaltending tandem of Chelsea Dement and Summer Reyes. The two goalies combined for three saves.
Almquist has plenty to look forward to in the net, “Dement played eight quarters and did not allow a goal,” said Almquist.
Dement is also another returning sophomore player from the 2011 state championship team.
Defensively, Almquist said the Tigers are “sound.”
They kept their opponents away from the net this weekend only allowing five goals in total over 16 quarters.
Heading into their third game, the Tigers continued with the defensive play as the team combined for 26 steals in their second shutout against the Fresno City College Rams.
Dannielle Wenzel contributed with seven steals as the Tigers shut out the Rams with a 20-0 victory.
Reyes had eight saves at the net while Guerts led the way again with five goals and two assists.
Almquist is confident that his team’s defense will help early on in the season while they find their timing on offense.
“Our defense is real strong,” Almquist said.
In their final contest the Tigers cruised to victory, beating the Santa Rosa Bear Cubs, 13-1.
The Tigers did not give up a goal in the first or second quarter the entire tournament.
Although there are some incoming freshmen, Almquist thinks the team has the right attitude for the task at hand, “We have not won anything. This is a new team and we have to prove ourselves,” Almquist said.
When asked about what areas the team needs to work on for next match, Almquist said that they need to build a better flow on offense, “we need to be on the same page.”
