Girls water polo: Barty’s overtime heroics keep Redwood in title picture

If the MCAL playoffs are going to be anything like the action in the pool this week, teams are in for a major challenge.

The Redwood High girls water polo team battled visiting Marin Catholic for an entire game plus two overtimes, eventually celebrating a 7-6 victory over its rivals.

Sawyer Barty, after a relatively quiet night on the scoresheet, sent a long shot right into the far corner of the net for the winning goal 27 seconds into the second overtime.

The Giants stand tied atop the MCAL standings with Archie Williams, both 5-0. The two teams will meet Wednesday in a regular-season title showdown. The regular-season champion would enter the MCAL playoffs with the No. 1 seed for a likely matchup with Terra Linda.

“The top seed is important. The top seed wouldn’t face Archie Williams or Marin Catholic in the semifinals,” Redwood head coach Brian Monty said.

Marin Catholic was in a three-way race for the regular-season title until the Wildcats fell to the Falcons, 6-5, in double overtime on Tuesday. A victory over Redwood could have put Marin Catholic back in the title picture, if Archie Williams were to suffer a loss.

“We came into this on an emotional high after last night, for sure,” Marin Catholic head coach Sophie Waldron said. “We’ve proved over the last few games that we are one of the top teams in the league, but we have to step it up.”

Both Redwood and Marin Catholic players expected a competitive and emotional contest on Wednesday night.

“I was really nervous and excited coming into this game,” Redwood senior Adella Fender said. “We all play club ball together, so we know each other well and our coaches know how everyone plays.”

Marin Catholic struck first when Claire Cassidy spun a shot to the corner of the net just 37 seconds into the game. Emma Slaught also scored for the Wildcats in the first frame, but Fender netted two of her three Redwood goals in opening quarter.

The game continued its back-and-forth pace, with the score tied at 3-3 at halftime. Redwood took its first lead of the game early in the third quarter on a goal from Sydney Moseley roughly three yards in front of the net.

Marin Catholic rallied as Slaught and Bella Kiriakis scored before the end of the third quarter and retake the lead, 5-4.

As the game wore on, with neither team able to gain a significant advantage, the specter of overtime loomed large over the pool.

Redwood took the lead in the fourth quarter with an emphatic goal by Frender and penalty shot by Cassidy. MC’s Hannah Slaught came up with a goal with 14 seconds left to tie the score, 6-6, and send the game into overtime.

Déjà vu for the Wildcats.

“We have to learn to finish games in regulation,” Waldron said.