On September 13, the Berkeley High School varsity women’s water polo team took on Bishop O’Dowd High School.
In the first half of the game, the teams seemed very evenly matched. Both teams attempted to attack, but strong defense from both sides kept either team from scoring. Lily Welsh, a senior, attributed their difficulty with shooting to O’Dowd’s strong goalkeeper, stating that, “We were very intimidated by (their goalie) in the beginning of the game…when (the other team has) a really good goalie, no one wants to shoot.”
Soon after the third quarter began, Welsh took a shot and scored the first goal for BHS. Just thirty seconds later, O’Dowd fired back and scored their first goal. O’Dowd attacked again shortly after, with two shots that bounced off the goal posts, and then a shot that went in. BHS responded by scoring two more goals. The eventful quarter ended with a score of 3-2 with BHS in the lead.
BHS scored another goal in the beginning of the fourth quarter, extending their lead. Eden Barnes, a sophomore, said that this goal was a key moment because, “We realized that we were up by two and we could potentially win the game.” A few minutes later, an O’Dowd player took a shot from far out, and scored.
With less than a minute left in the game, O’Dowd scored another goal, tying the game. As time ran out, the two teams battled for one last goal. O’Dowd went on the attack and with only 10 seconds left, scored, putting themselves in the lead and winning the game.
Although they were not able to secure a win, the team believes that they will have a successful season. Reba Gamson-Knight, a junior, said, “We were really strong playing today. We were having good passes to each other. We just couldn’t shoot that well.”
Welsh expressed that they, “just need to keep doing what we’re doing…we’re already such a strong team. We have such strong bonds. We just need to keep practicing.”