There will be no overlooking Orange Lutheran’s girls water polo team.
The Lancers, in only their third season, have arrived. They are ranked seventh in the preseason CIF Division 1 poll and fifth in Orange County.
The accolades arrive on the heels of the school’s breakthrough boys campaign, which included a trip to the CIF-SS Division 1 quarterfinals. The boys were unranked in the preseason.
“I never would have thought it would be this fast,” Orange Lutheran coach Steve Carrera said of his program’s rise.
The Lancers’ ascent on the girls side has been sparked by keeping several young players together while adding talent to the mix.
Orange Lutheran has developed players such as Maddie Himler, Paris Major, goalie Bailey Meyer, Emma Skelly and Campbell Ruh since its maiden campaign of 2012-13. The Lancers added sophomore twins Mollie and Myna Simmons last season and transfers Bailey Dillard (Northwood) and Kelsey Tyler (Santiago of Corona).
Several of the girls also played together during age-group with the Northwood club, which Carrera oversees.
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GIRLS WATER POLO PREVIEW ’14-15
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“The biggest strength is that the core has been playing together for a very long time,” he said. “We’ve definitely worked really hard.”
Dillard sat out last season because of transfer rules, but she becomes a critical addition for a squad that believes its time has arrived.
“We want to compete for a league championship this year,” Carrera said. “We know it’s going to be very difficult.”
“People can say that teams are up or down. The conversations on the pool deck are that Santa Margarita is down. Rosary might be down. But those are great programs with great coaches. They’re going to be competing.”
With no at-large berths expected in any of the playoff divisions, Orange Lutheran will likely need to finish in the top three in the Trinity to quality for the postseason. Mater Dei is another rebuilding team to watch, so four strong teams could be competing for three playoff spots.
The Trinity League moves up to Division 1 for the playoffs.
Carrera believes the jump from Division 2 is sudden for his squad, but in a lot of ways, the Lancers have been operating well at that type of pace.
BEWARE OF THE OILERS
Huntington Beach could be one of the county’s most improved teams. Coach Mark Canner’s squad, which went 1-4 in the Sunset League last season, features Pacifica transfer Kalista Hyham, freshman goalie Marina Hyham and freshman Julia Rozolis-Hill, a former Southern Pacific zone club player of the year.
The Oilers also return seven other players from last season, including leading-scorer Sabrina Nguyen.
Huntington Beach’s rise could create an intriguing four-team race in the Sunset League with Newport Harbor, Los Alamitos and Edison.
NOTES
Rosary standout left-hander Sabrina Garabet transferred to St. Lucy’s of Glendora while high-scoring Woodbridge junior Shawna Kedzie is now at University. Corona del Mar senior center Kaybree Albright is a transfer from Righetti of Santa Maria. … Santa Margarita freshman Bella Baia scored 10 goals in an 18-9 season-opening victory against Dana Hills. … Santa Margarita will play host to a six-game showcase event Dec. 20. Top-ranked Laguna Beach will play No. 5 Orange Lutheran at 11 a.m. in one of the top matches. … Jeff Gorman, who guided Yorba Linda to the CIF Division 6 crown two seasons ago, is now the coach at El Modena. He had recently served as the interim coach at El Dorado. … Segerstrom and Ocean View, which played in the Division 7 final last season, now reside in Division 6 with the rest of the Golden West League. … Veteran Newport Harbor coach Bill Barnett plans to retire after this season.
Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com
