Boys water polo rallies in second half to beat Barlow

However, it’d be a tough task for the Eagles to extend its winning streak to four as Tuesday’s matchup was a contest against the 6-3 Bruins and 7-1 Eagles.

And right out of the gate, things weren’t looking good for HRV.

“It was a poor performance to open the game,” said Hood River Valley boys water polo head coach David Robinson. “Non-typical defense from us in the first half allowed counter attacks and open shots.”

The struggles on the defensive end correlated to the offensive end, as Robinson explained. “Unable to get the counter attacks we create with our defense, we had a less than optimal offensive flow in the first half,” he said.

Although it was an uncharacteristic first half for the boys, they were still within striking distance as it was a 10-6 game in favor of Barlow at halftime.

“At halftime, I asked the boys to just focus on the defense they know how to play and be patient on offense,” said Robinson. “They came out and did the first part, focusing on defense, throughout the second half.”

The boys would go on to outscore the Bruins 11-6 in the second half to take a one-point victory over Barlow; final score 17-16 HRV.

“However, I’m still not pleased with the lack of offensive flow,” said Robinson.

The boys ended the night with 37 shots on goal, including a team-high 19 shots from junior Connor McElwee and seven from senior Chad Klaas.

Those numbers from McElwee and Klaas left 11 shots on goal for the other seven players, which as Robinson explained, “is not ideal.

“But with all that being said, it was a crucial win for this team,” said Robinson.

On the defensive end of the pool, junior goalkeeper Jed Little had “another heroic game with some critical saves in the fourth quarter as well as smart ball and clock management,” said Robinson.

Little ended the night with nine saves on 25 shot attempts on goal by the Bruins.

McElwee led the way offensively with 10 goals scored and behind him was Klaas with five goals.

Other scorers versus Barlow were Pen Paphanchi and Saylor Sunby with one goal each.

Leaders in assists versus Barlow: Sunby (5), Clayton Lee (1) and Ethan Yokum (1).

Leaders in steals versus Barlow: Klaas (7), Mario Vila (3) and Corbett Blackman (1).

After the hard-fought battle Tuesday night, the boys were thrown right back into the pool on Wednesday, where the MHC third seed Parkrose Broncos was waiting.

“This game was a must win for us if we wanted a chance to win the MHC and also rank first in 5A state rankings ahead of state playoffs,” said Robinson.

Against the Broncos on Wednesday night, the boys were able to come away with a 9-7 victory to move to 10-1 in conference play, securing, at the least, a second-place finish in the MHC.

Scoring leaders versus Parkrose: Klaas (2), Yokum (2), Paphanchi (2), Blackman (1), Lee (1) and Vila (1).

Leaders in assists against the Broncos: Lee (3), Vila (1), Blackman (1) and Yokum (1).

Leaders in steals versus Parkrose: Klaas (10), Vila (4), Paphanchi (1) and Yokum (1).

In the goal, Little ended the night against the Broncos with nine saves on 16 shot attempts at goal.

After the Wednesday game, HRV traveled to Gresham on Thursday, Oct. 18 (results unavailable at press time).

The next home game for Hood River will be against the Sandy Pioneers on Tuesday, Oct. 23. Game time is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. at the Hood River Aquatic Center.