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  • Mater Dei players and coaches look on from the pool...

    Mater Dei players and coaches look on from the pool deck as Harvard-Westlake wraps up a 10-7 victory in the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final at Woollett Aquatics Center on Saturday.

  • Mater Dei players look on from the pool deck as...

    Mater Dei players look on from the pool deck as Harvard-Westlake wraps up a 10-7 victory in the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final at Woollett Aquatics Center on Saturday.

  • Mater Dei's Matthew Payne tries to hold off Harvard-Westlake's Evan...

    Mater Dei's Matthew Payne tries to hold off Harvard-Westlake's Evan Rosenfeld during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo finas at Woollett Aquatics Center in Irvine on Saturday.

  • Harvard-Westlake's Evan Rosenfeld, left, looks for an opening to shoot...

    Harvard-Westlake's Evan Rosenfeld, left, looks for an opening to shoot against Mater Dei goalie Jonathan Van De Velde during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final at Woollett Aquatics Center in Irvine on Saturday.

  • Mater Dei goalie Jonathan Van De Velde extends but can't...

    Mater Dei goalie Jonathan Van De Velde extends but can't stop the score by Harvard-Westlake's Johnny Hooper during the the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final Saturday.

  • Mater Dei fans react during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys...

    Mater Dei fans react during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final against Harvard-Westlake on Saturday.

  • Mater Dei fans react during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys...

    Mater Dei fans react during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final against Harvard-Westlake on Saturday.

  • Mater Dei's Nicholas Lavayen reacts after he scored against Harvard-Westlake...

    Mater Dei's Nicholas Lavayen reacts after he scored against Harvard-Westlake during the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final Saturday.

  • Harvard-Westlake players and coaches celebrate with their championship plaque as...

    Harvard-Westlake players and coaches celebrate with their championship plaque as Mater Dei players look on after the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final Saturday. Harvard-Westlake completed an undefeated season by beating Mater Dei, 10-7.

  • Harvard-Westlake players and coaches celebrate by jumping into the pool...

    Harvard-Westlake players and coaches celebrate by jumping into the pool after beating Mater Dei, 10-7, in the CIF-SS Division 1 boys water polo final on Saturday.

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Dan Albano. Sports HS Reporter.

// MORE INFORMATION: Staff Mug Shot taken August 26, 2010 : by KATE LUCAS, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER.

IRVINE Mater Dei’s boys water polo players arrived at Saturday night’s CIF-SS Division 1 final with the resume and look to challenge undefeated Harvard-Westlake of Studio City.

The second-seeded Monarchs went undefeated in 2011 and 2012. And in a sign of unity, several Mater Dei players shaved their heads, some leaving a little hair on top in a nod to Brad Pitt’s character in the World War II film “Fury”.

But there would be no intimidating Harvard-Westlake. The top-seeded Wolverines pulled a page from Mater Dei’s old script and capped its own undefeated season with a 10-7 victory in front of an overflow crowd at the Woollett Aquatics Center.

The Wolverines (29-0) also defeated Mater Dei in the 2013 Division 1 final.

“It’s never easy going undefeated,” Mater Dei coach Chris Segesman said. “If you look back at this year, Harvard had the best talent, a good combination of size and speed.

“(But) it’s never easy arriving at this moment undefeated and to capitalize in the pressure. … They did a good job.”

As it did in three previous meetings this fall, Mater Dei (26-5) made the Wolverines work.

While Harvard-Westlake’s 6-foot-6, 225-pound center Ben Hallock, who turned 17 on Saturday, scored a match-high four goals, his scoring damage at center was limited to putting away a rebound in the second period.

Segesman said the Monarchs wanted to limit Hallock’s production at 2 meters.

Mater Dei also found success by switching to a press in the second half and held standout senior Johnny Hooper to one goal, on a counterattack in the first period.

“No team has pressed Harvard-Westlake this year,” Segesman said. “We played really well. … We had our moments to make a run and get this championship.”

The Monarchs’ Matt Payne scored the first goal, striking from 9 meters on a low shot that bounced in off the side-post. And a shot off a 5-meter foul by Nick Lavayen gave Mater Dei a 2-1 lead with 2:10 left in the first.

The Monarchs nearly recovered from a three-goal deficit in the second by drawing within, 6-5, on a strike from 9 meters by Will Lapkin early in the third. But the Wolverines answered with a pair of counterattacks to open an 8-5 lead later in the third to take control.

Both teams struggled to capitalize on the power play. Mater Dei went 2 for 8 while the Wolverines finished 2 for 7. Some of the struggles came during a second half that was especially physical and intense, featuring offensive fouls and minor acts of misconduct by a player from each team.

“There’s a rivalry,” Harvard-Westlake coach Brian Flacks said. “We scrimmage every weekend during the summer then we play Junior Olympics finals.”

Flacks reconsidered his selection of the word rivalry.

“We’ve won 37 straight games,” he said. “They won 105.”

Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com