The Andover Girls Varsity Waterpolo team took advantage of numerous fast break power plays in the fourth quarter but failed to mount a comeback as they fell to Loomis 8-12 for the second time this season.
The team lost in a 10-15 contest against Loomis two weekends ago, and hoped for a positive rematch last Wednesday. Andover, however, failed to defend against a lightning quick Loomis offense and fell behind early in the first quarter. Andover struggled on offense, as Loomis smothered any Andover attempt at goal.
Led by Co-Captain Alanna Waldman ’10 and bolstered by keeper Co-Captain Taylor Clarke ’10, Andover made a fourth quarter charge. Juliana Reider ’10 said, “Although Loomis was a tough team, we persevered and I know that we tired them out for their following game against Exeter, which made us feel good.”
In its first home game of the season, the team fed off of the home crowd’s positive energy, and battled hard throughout the fourth quarter to try and catch Loomis. Julia Torabi ’12 commented on the physical play, “The game was very physical, and that was very challenging for us. Not letting the bad calls and constant fouling get to us mentally was very hard, but when we ignored them in the fourth quarter, we played much better as a team.”
Waldman said, “We had a tough game against Loomis but we played really well and capitalized on their mistakes.” Most of the team contributed on the defensive end as players like Torabi and Theresa Faller ’11 managed to sneak in for some impressive steals. Although the game ended in defeat, Kira Wyckoff ’11 scored a beautiful skip shot into the left corner at the 1:24 mark to end the game on a high note. Goalie Clarke ’10 also had a nice outing, blocking a lot of tough shots at the high corners of the goal.
“Our last game against them, most of our goals came from 5-meter penalties, but in this game our points came from good passing and a lot of movement to create space for shooters. As a team, we have improved so much since our last game and only lost by 4 points,” added Waldman.
“We’re definitely improving. It can be really frustrating playing a team that hold suits and scratches, but although Andover doesn’t play that way, some consider it part of the game. We kept our cool though. We don’t need to play dirty to play well,” said Jennifer Oesterling ’10.
Andover will play Choate this weekend in hopes of improving it 3-3 record.
