Women's water polo remains perfect as they head to Golden West on Friday
By: James Archer, Staff Writer
Monarchs extend their seasonal record to a flawless 7-0 with their hardest battle at the Golden West tournament looming over them next weekend.
The Valley women’s water polo team defeated Bakersfield 12-4 while showing off its stout defense and balanced scoring attack.
Freshman goalie Beatrix Khachaturian has been the anchor for the Monarchs’ perfect 7-0 record. Through the first six games, Khachaturian has amassed 34 saves and a 61.8 save percentage across 18 quarters.
“I think the adjustment we made this year is our goalie play,” Head Coach Pete Loporchio said. “We have an outstanding goalie, and so it starts with the defensive end.”
Along with the goalie play, Valley has solidified its back line, allowing the defense to dictate the pace of the game. Their lockdown efficiency in the cage has limited opponents to 1.24 goals per quarter or a little more than 6 goals per contest.
The Monarchs held Bakersfield to 4 goals at the LAVC Aquatics Center today, but coach Loporchio said he still sees room for improvement.
“I think the times they scored, we were a bit lackadaisical on defense,” he said. “Every possession, offensively and defensively, we just have to be a little more focused and make sure that every possession counts.”
On the offensive front, Valley has scored a total of 103 goals for an average just shy of 15 per contest.
“We are fortunate to have very balanced scoring,” Loporchio said.
Rather than singling out one unsung hero as the glue behind the undefeated run, Loporchio pointed out the collective synergy of the starting rotation.“We’ve had a well-rounded group,” Loporchio said. “The entire starting lineup contributes in different ways. You have a lefty here. You have a dominant center play in the middle. You’ve got a really solid goalie, and you’ve got some skill passers and shooters.”
While Valley is riding high at the start of the season, a big test will come Friday when the Monarchs head to the Golden West Aquatics Center for the Golden West Tournament.
“That's a whole different level of play,” Loporchio said of the upcoming tournament. “They [Golden West] are sixth or seventh in the state. It will be a good challenge for us to see how we match up against some of the top-tier teams. Saddleback [College] is up there. Golden West is up there. There's a rocky road ahead, and the level of play will increase.”
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