Bulldog water polo dominates Wolfpack

By Joe Naiman

Ramona High School’s girls water polo team improved its season record to 4-2 Dec. 6 with an 11-4 road victory against West Hills.

“It was a good all-around performance,” said coach Donnie Williams. “It allowed the bench to get in and contribute.”

Ramona scored the game’s first two goals and had a 4-1 lead when the buzzer sounded to end the first period. The Bulldogs led 8-2 at halftime.

“We still kept countering on them,” Williams said. He added that the defensive skills went beyond counterattacks.

“The whole team did a really good job defensively,” he said. “We did a really good job of pressing and stealing.”

The team recorded more than 15 steals during the game led by four apiece from Tiffany Larson and Paulina Bernd, and three from Holly Smith. Larson is Ramona’s goalie and only had to make five saves during the game.

The Bulldogs missed 17 shots in addition to the 11 they made. Williams noted that taking 28 shots in 28 minutes equates to the team creating opportunities.

“The girls did a good job on offense,” Williams said.

Ramona had a 10-2 lead after three periods. The Bulldogs had only three exclusion penalties during the first three quarters but had four exclusions in the fourth period.

Cassie Bernas led the Bulldogs with four goals. Rachel Hogervorst placed three shots into the net while Bernd scored twice. Smith and Jocelyn Schwegler contributed a goal apiece.

The Bulldogs travel to Carlsbad for a Dec. 14 game.