Foothill to meet rival El Toro in Division I final

Foothill's boys water polo team needed a big play, and Brenden Verloop delivered.

With the Knights clinging to a one-goal lead late in their Division I semifinal against a surging Santa Barbara, Verloop drew an exclusion at set that gave Foothill a much-needed scoring chance.

Conor Golden converted the power-play opportunity with 1:30 left in the fourth and the top-seeded Knights held off the Dons, 9-6, Wednesday night at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center in Irvine.

"I knew someone had to step up," said Verloop. "They (Santa Barbara) had a great run in the fourth."

Foothill (23-7) made its run in the third, outscoring the Dons, 4-1, to open a 7-2 lead. Paul Reynolds (three goals) helped highlight the frame with a spectacular cross-cage lob shot from about 6 meters that just beat the shot clock.

But Santa Barbara (23-8) scored the first four goals of the fourth to draw within, 7-6, with 2:07 left. After Golden's strike, Foothill goalie Jay Lovero grabbed an errant pass by Santa Barbara with 35 seconds left and Stephen Donoghue added an insurance goal with 10 seconds left. "I knew we would bounce back," Foothill coach Jim Brumm said.

Foothill scored three times in the final 1:30 of the first half to take a 3-1 lead. The Knights play second-seeded and league rival El Toro in the finals Saturday night at 8 at Woollett.

In the other Division I semifinal:

El Toro 11, Los Alamitos 4: Nick Rascon scored four goals and Tommy O'Connell had 14 saves at Woollett as the top-ranked Chargers (29-2) beat the second-ranked Griffins (25-6) for the third time.

Rascon blasted a skip-shot from center off the bottom of the crossbar and into the cage for a goal with 17 seconds left in the first to give El Toro a 4-1 lead.

O'Connell highlighted the second by blocking a man-advantage chance off his head. "For the first time, we came out quick," said El Toro's Griffin White, who scored three goals.

Jeff Zaccaro added three goals, including two on extra, for the Chargers. El Toro finished 4 for 5 on the power play. "That was a humbling experience," Los Alamitos coach Dave Carlson said.

In the Division II semifinals:

Servite 9, JSerra 7:Cruz Smithson drew a penalty and scored with 3:57 left in the fourth to break a 7-7 tie, and Nate Little scored from about 6 meters on a counterattack with 1:42 left to lead the Friars (20-13) at Woollett. "We're showing a lot more heart," said Servite coach Mustafa Hassan, whose squad fell to JSerra, 6-4, in the Trinity League.

Servite will play another league rival, Mater Dei, in the finals Saturday at 3:45 p.m. at Woollett.

Mater Dei 10, Riverside Poly 6:The top-seeded Monarchs (23-7) trailed, 2-0, after the first period at Woollett but scored nine consecutive goals to take control. Bret Bonanni, Nathaniel Caulum and Alex Wherry each finished with three goals.

In other semifinals:

Troy 10, Palm Desert 5: In Division V, Clark Barry made 16 saves and Josh Stedman had five goals in La Quinta as the Warriors (27-5) reached their first final. In Division III, Montebello beat Laguna Beach, 10-6, at Mt. SAC.

Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com