Agoura girls' water polo team jumps all over Calabasas
By Thomas Gase tgase@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers NOWHERE TO GO- Above, Calabasas High's Tanya Khani, left, is pressured by Agoura's Alana Altmann during Monday's match at AHS. The Chargers won 15-4. Below right, Katie Jordan of Agoura rears back for a powerful shot on goal. AHS was ranked No. 3 in the latest CIF-Southern Section Division II coaches' poll.

During the second half at Agoura High on Monday afternoon, Calabasas girls' water polo team did a good job of keeping up with the Chargers. Unfortunately for the Coyotes, by the second half the Chargers were so far ahead that they began playing their junior varsity team.

Agoura, ranked No. 3 in the latest CIFSouthern Section Division II coaches' poll, would eventually win the match 15-4.

In the first half, the Coyotes had a tough time maintaining pace with the Chargers' varsity squad as AHS scored four goals in the first three minutes en route to an 8-0 first-quarter lead.

Before the first half was over, AHS held a commanding 11-0 lead, helped by three goals by junior Casey Flacks.

With the game out of reach, Agoura decided to give its junior varsity team some experience at the varsity level.

"We decided to let everyone play today," Agoura head coach Jason Rosenthal said. "Calabasas is struggling a little with a lot of their coaches leaving over the past couple years, and they also don't have a junior varsity team. Because of these reasons, we gave our younger kids a chance to play."

Although the Coyotes showed a never-say-die attitude by outscoring the Chargers 3-1 in the final quarter, CHS was clearly overmatched.

"We pretty much try and stay positive during this time," Calabasas assistant coach Sean Wax said. "With us staying positive, it makes it more fun with these girls who are playing hard. You can see just how high we jump on the sidelines and how excited we get when we score."

The Coyotes were especially thrilled for Lundon Templeton, who scored two goals in the second half.

This season is the first year for the coaching staff at Calabasas. Although the team is in the middle of a rebuilding process, CHS hopes they can return to the top of the Marmonte League standings soon.

"I think this season is a learning experience for all of us," Wax said. "With the league as tough as it is, I think it may be another two to three years before we are dominant again."

While the Coyotes are rebuilding, the Chargers seem to be heading down the right path.

The team is currently 3-0 in the Marmonte League and is hoping to go far in the postseason. Although AHS was clearly the better team on Monday, members of the team such as senior Carly Clark have learned not to take any opponent for granted.

"We have to learn not to play down to the level of our opponents, and I think we did a good job of that today,' Clark said. "It was a little different not playing the second half today, but I think it was good for the younger girls to get some experience."

Clark, who signed a Letter of Intent to play at the University of Santa Barbara in November, scored one goal in the first quarter before sitting the entire second half.

Although Agoura won easily, it knows the season will only get harder as it progresses.

"We still need to work on running the stuff we do in practice the same way in games," Rosenthal said. "Today we seemed to run everything correctly, and that helped us in our win."