Wednesday’s CIF girls water polo semifinals
DIVISION 4
RIVERSIDE POLY (21-9) vs. MISSION VIEJO (25-6)
Site, time: Diamond Bar HS, 5:30 p.m.
Outcome:The third-seeded Diablos face a familiar hurdle to reach their first section final. They need to beat No. 2 seed Riverside Poly, which defeated Mission Viejo, 11-8, in the semifinals last season at Diamond Bar. The Diablos and Poly haven’t played since but Mission Viejo’s season-long goal has been to reach the finals. Mission Viejo’s double-post offense is led by Skylar Newhouser-Flores (125 goals) and Emilee Feilmeier (81 goals). Megan Patterson (75 steals) and Tiffany Sims (245 saves) help anchor a defense that faces a major test. Riverside Poly is led by Stanford-bound Lauren Bywater, a 6-foot-1 utility who leads Bears with 127 goals and 49 assists. Riverside Poly holds the advantage with strength of schedule. The Bears played the Holiday Cup, Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions and America’s Finest City Tournament. The Diablos stepped up their schedule but the Bears played more elite teams. Santa Margarita is one intriguing recent common opponent. The Bears fell to the Eagles, 10-7, while the Diablos lost, 10-9. This could be one of the best matches of the day.
