No. 8 Aztecs Defeat No. 3 Foothill

Esperanza waited all season for an opportunity like this and the Aztecs didn’t squander it, knocking off Foothill in a nonleague girls’ water polo game, 8-7, Monday at Esperanza High.

Foothill (7-3), which finished third at last weekend’s Newport Harbor tournament and moved up to the No. 3 spot in this week’s Orange County Coaches’ poll, had a chance to tie the score in the final 30 seconds.

But Foothill freshman Brittany Hayes’ shot was deflected by Esperanza goalie Kelsi Mills and the ball barely stayed out of the goal.

After eighth-ranked Esperanza (7-2) retained possession, the Aztecs ran out the clock.

“This is a huge win,” Esperanza Coach Max Miyahara said. “We’ve been gunning for those top-five-type teams in the county all season, and we came up short earlier this year against Newport Harbor and Long Beach Wilson.

“But we’ve been working on our mental toughness. The girls came in ready to play, had a shot and took advantage of it today.”

Esperanza took control of the game early especially after Jackie Pirro, Foothill’s leading scorer last season and one of the Knights’ top two-meter defenders, picked up her second major foul four minutes into the game. Pirro had to be more cautious after that because if a player receives three major fouls, she is disqualified.

The Aztecs took a 4-2 lead at halftime and used an effective counterattack to keep the Knights off balance in the second half.

Esperanza’s Teresa Guidi scored three goals and set up teammate Dianna Catron’s second goal with 3 minutes 47 seconds remaining to give the Aztecs an 8-6 lead.

But Foothill didn’t quit. Jo Graff scored her second goal from nine meters off an assist from Hayes with 2:25 remaining to trim the lead to 8-7.

Then the Knights got a six-on-five opportunity on their next possession when Guidi was whistled for a major foul. But Esperanza’s defense responded, holding Foothill without a shot on the six-on-five with Catron ending the threat with a steal.

Foothill’s final flurry had Hayes, who scored three goals, firing a shot from four meters on the right wing, but Mills got just a piece of it. Foothill scrambled to get the rebound, but freshman Gabbie Domanic, who had three goals, missed her shot wide.

“We had our opportunities,” Foothill Coach Dan Klatt said. “We just didn’t put them away.”