PREP WATER POLO: Boys, girls will be busy in tourneys

Connelly, Aptos events attract top local teams

The top boys and girls water polo teams in the Central Coast Section will continue their preparations for the postseason when they hit the road for tournament play this weekend.

The Palo Alto boys (14-7) will be joined by Gunn (7-8) and Menlo School (9-5) today and Saturday in the annual Connelly Invitational at Lynbrook and Bellarmine.

The Paly girls (13-5) will join Castilleja (9-1), Menlo-Atherton (8-7) and Gunn (6-7) the same days in the Aptos Tournament at Cabrillo College.

The Menlo and Gunn boys tuned up for this weekend by posting league triumphs this week.

The Knights improved to 5-0 in the Peninsula Athletic League by toppling Woodside, 12-4, and San Mateo, 17-3. The Titans improved to 2-1 in the SCVAL De Anza Division by dumping visiting Monta Vista on Wednesday, 15-7, as seniors Brad Lefkowits (seven), David Swinehart (four) and Tyson Dirksen (three) accounted for all but one of their goals.

In the wins over Woodside and San Mateo, Menlo was led by John Briscoe, Lance Fenton and Jeff Ida--all with six goals apiece.

Elsewhere in PAL play, Menlo-Atherton (4-1) remained just a game behind Menlo with victories over Mills (11-7) and Hillsdale (12-4). Dan Pickard (eight) and Steve Hagerman (six) paced the Bears.

Sacred Heart Prep (2-3) was swept this past week, losing to Aragon, 19-6, and Sequoia, 14-13. Jamie Lovewell topped the scoring for Sacred Heart, tallying nine goals in the two matches.

In girls' action, Menlo joined Gunn and Sacred Heart Prep in the winners' circle this week.

The Knights (3-0, 7-4) maintained their hold on first place in the Girls Private School League with a 13-5 win over second-place Notre Dame-Belmont. Julie Gardner and Erin Welsh tallied three goals apiece for Menlo, which knocked Notre Dame out of a share of first place with the win. Megan Hubbs and Jenny Booth added two goals each.

Sacred Heart (1-2, 4-3) won its first GPSL match by downing host St. Ignatius, 14-9, as Marissa Muller led the way with seven goals.

Gunn (3-0, 6-7) remained atop the SCVAL El Camino Division with an 18-9 pounding of host Los Altos. Maria Zavala outscored Los Altos all by herself with an 11-goal explosion.

--Keith Peters

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