Lorrimer’s 6 Goals Lead Irvine’s Victory

Nicole Lorrimer scored six goals, three in the third quarter, to help the Irvine girls’ water polo team beat third-ranked Santa Margarita, 9-6, Wednesday in a nonleague game at Heritage Park.

The Vaquero offense capitalized early when sophomore Sarah Hamilton scored on a man-up advantage in the first minute of play. Lorrimer, a senior, scored Irvine’s second goal off a rebound shot at 3:56, and Hamilton scored from two meters to give Irvine a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

“We played smart water polo,” Irvine Coach Scott Hinman said, “and we got in position to earn those shots.”

Irvine, ranked seventh in the county, also benefited from the play of goalie Kim Johnson, who had four saves in the first quarter and finished the game with 12.

The Vaquero offense kept the pressure on in the second quarter, when Lorrimer scored twice, once on a penalty shot, and Hamilton added another goal.

“We set our game plan to dictate the pace of things,” Hinman said, “and I think we were able to do that.”

Santa Margarita’s offense woke up in the third quarter, when Erika Figge, Katie Kunkel and Clare Peybrune each scored, but Lorrimer matched them.

Figge added two more goals for the Eagles in the fourth quarter, but several saves by Johnson thwarted the comeback effort.

“Kim [Johnson] had a big game for us in goal,” Hinman said. “This is her first year on the varsity and she’s made some big contributions.”