Boys water polo: TARS DUNK FOOTHILL

Tony Altobelli

BELMONT SHORES - Combine the strength of a grizzly bear, the water

speed of a dolphin and the shooting accuracy of a middle-aged Englishman

dart player in a London pub and you have just painted the picture of the

Newport Harbor High boys water polo team.

The Sailors used every weapon in the bag and came through with a

dominating 15-9 win over Foothill in the CIF Southern Section Division I

championships at Belmont Plaza Olympic Pool.

“That was, by far, the best I have ever seen these guys play,” Newport

Coach Brian Kreutzkamp said. “These guys were ready to go right away and

we got the job done.”

The championship is the first for the Sailors (26-5) since 1984 and

the only remaining piece to those past championship puzzles, co-Coach

Bill Barnett, couldn’t escape the customary dunk in the pool.

“It was useless to try to hide,” a soaked, shivering and smiling

Barnett said. “They would have found me anyways.”

Also with nowhere to hide was Foothill goalie and national junior team

goalie Ian Elliott, who was no match for the Sailors’ arsenal.

Before all the players were completely wet, Newport jumped on the

scoreboard when Peter Belden scored the first of his four goals on a

four-meter penalty shot just 14 seconds into the contest.

Following a Brandon McLain save in goal, Newport scored again on a

goal from Steven Jendrusina, making it 2-0 after less than two minutes

had elapsed.

Just 18 seconds later, Kyle Bean took a pass from Ryan Cook and found

the back of the net. Three shots, three goals.

“They were absolutely flying out there,” Kreutzkamp said, also in

soaked clothes. “They set the tempo immediately, which is what we needed

to do against a team like Foothill.”

Jendrusina and Belden each scored again before the first quarter came

to a close, giving Newport five goals on six shots.

“After the first quarter I wanted to ease up, but this was the CIF

championship,” Belden said. “I’ve waited four years for this and it’s

unbelievable.”

On the other side of the pool, McLain outplayed the more established

Knights’ goalie, allowing only one first-period goal, while making three

big-time saves.

“Brandon was unbelievable tonight,” Kreutzkamp said. “We’ve been going

back and forth with our goalies until the final couple of weeks and

Brandon got the nod. He played out of his head out there.”

McClain attributed the Newport snipers for making his challenge a lot

easier.

“When we got that early lead, that really helped me to relax,” McLain

said. “I’ve been getting ready for this game all week long. I’m so happy

we were able to win this. It’s been four long years for the seniors.”

Newport maintained its pressure on Foothill (18-12). After the Knights

cut the lead to 5-2, Newport scored three of the next four goals to

maintain a comfortable lead.

The Sailors’ crossbar and goal posts were in the way of several

Foothill shots. Part of that came from the relentless Sailors’ defense,

led by Belden.

“He was everywhere,” Kreutzkamp said. “He was scoring for us, he

played great defense, we won the sprints each quarter. He did it all.”

Jendrusina and Belden each had three goals in the first half as

Newport led, 10-5.

Belden and Cook, Newport’s primary scorers all season long, combined

for six goals and 10 assists in the contest, while Jendrusina (four

goals), Joey Snelgrove (one goal) and Littrell (one goal) each provided

the extra offense needed.

“I figured one of those extra guys was going to have to step up and be

a factor,” Kreutzkamp said. “It turned out they all provided some offense

for us, which was huge.”

While McLain continued to make big saves in the second half, Greg

Worthing did a nice Dennis Rodman imitation, putting in two goals off

shot attempts from Cook, keeping Newport in a comfortable lead.

McLain finished the night with eight saves, all of the stellar

variety, before the coaching staff emptied the bench with just over a

minute remaining.

“Our school history is great and everything, but it really doesn’t

have anything to do with this team and this game,” Kreutzkamp said.

“That’s a lot of pressure to put on one team. We just wanted to go out

there and perform to our best and they definitely did that tonight.”