Girls water polo: Redwood claws out victory over Archie Williams

Another thriller in the pool between Archie Williams High and Redwood injected a lot more excitement into the race for first place among Marin County’s girls water polo programs.

After three full periods of battling, Redwood freshman Tigerlily Engberg launched the ball into the top left corner of the cage for the go-ahead goal as the Giants outscored the Peregrine Falcons 3-0 in the final period to lock up a 8-6 victory.

“That was exciting, so good,” Engberg said. “I’ve been waiting for that. I was hoping for an opportunity like that.”

The Falcons (11-7, 5-1 MCAL) entered the contest alone atop the MCAL girls water polo standings, undefeated through the first half of the league slate, and looking for a clean sweep. The Giants (12-5, 4-2) threw that into disarray Thursday, and now the top four teams in the MCAL — with Tam and Marin Academy also chasing a share of the lead — are separated by just one game.

“Every year with Redwood and Archie Williams, it’s always a battle,” Peregrine Falcons head coach Todd Duplanty said.

Redwood sophomore Samantha Riley and junior Brooke Hansen scored three goals each during a taut matchup.

Holly Hovey and Taylor Fahy led the Falcons with two goals each.

“We have to cherish our wins and learn from our losses,” Duplanty said. “This was a great game. Redwood is a great team. At the end of the year, we all have to face each other again in the playoffs.”

Archie Williams beat Redwood 10-4 on Sept. 20 in tournament play, and the Giants were ready for another tough go-around Thursday. No matter what the standings suggest, records go out the window whenever Redwood and Archie Williams square up.

The Falcons took an early 2-0 lead with goals from Fahy and Elsa Kastner before Riley tied the game with a pair of goals within 2 minutes to close out the first period.

Hansen gave Redwood its first lead with a cross to the far post nearly 3 minutes into the second period. But the Peregrine Falcons clawed back with a penalty goal from Hovey and a shot from Josephine Davis that was partially deflected before settling into the side of the net for a 4-3 halftime lead.

The Giants and Peregrine Falcons went back and forth in the third. A drive down the alley tied the game 5-5, but with 30 seconds left in the period, Fahy backhanded a lob just out of the reach of Giants goalkeeper Aurora DeVilbiss for a 6-5 lead.

With pressure mounting in the fourth period, the Giants were eager to turn the tide. Fighting heavy defensive pressure, Redwood sophomore Arianna Nikfar sent the ball forward as her head disappeared under water. Nikfar surfaced in time to see the ball float into the net to tie the game 6-6 early in the fourth period.

After Redwood took the lead on Engberg’s goal, the Peregrine Falcons turned up the heat on their attack. A shot from Sylvie Fine hit the cross bar and landed behind DeVilbiss, but luck wasn’t with the Falcons as the Giants scooped up the ball before it went into the net.

“This shows if we work hard, this is the result we can get,” Engberg said. “I’m proud of our team.”