Sacred Heart Prep boys water polo adds to legacy with fourth straight Northern California Division 1 regional crown

Sacred Heart Prep wasn’t able to counteract the counterattack of Concord De La Salle a month earlier in a showdown of the top two boys water polo programs in Northern California.

But the return of junior defender Oliver Marcin, along with several timely stops from goalkeeper Murdoch Baker-Matsuoka helped the Gators neutralize De La Salle’s offensive prowess in the rematch Saturday night in the Division 1 regional final at the Dunlevie Aquatic Center in Atherton.

Baker-Matsuoka turned away a pair of 5-meter penalty shots during the first three quarters, then rose to the occasion again in the clutch, saving the final four shots he faced in the last four minutes to help preserve a 9-7 victory and the fourth consecutive Division 1 regional championship for the Gators.

Sacred Heart Prep (19-10) became the only Northern California water polo program, regardless of gender or division, to win four consecutive regional titles.

Miramonte has captured four Division 1 girls water polo regional crowns, but the Matadors achieved their first victory in 2017, followed by three in a row from 2021-23.

De La Salle (22-7), making its first appearance in a regional final, produced an 11-8 victory Oct. 24 against Sacred Heart Prep, which competed during the regular-season contest without an injured Marcin as a 2-meter presence.

It marked the first victory for De La Salle against the Gators after being eliminated by Sacred Heart Prep in a heartbreaking 13-12 setback in last year’s Division 1 regional semifinals.

The Spartans scored more than half their goals in the first meeting relying on a strong counterattack, but Sacred Heart Prep minimized those opportunities in Saturday’s rematch, especially in the second half.

Marcin supported Murdoch-Baker with a timely field block of a De La Salle shot during the final quarter.

Nelson Harris led Sacred Heart Prep with four goals, including one as part of a run of three unanswered goals in the third quarter that increased the Gators’ advantage to 9-6.

Gates Gamble added three goals, with Clay Carrington and Luke Kirincich also scoring for Sacred Heart Prep.

Will Corr also blocked a pair of 5-meter penalty shots for the Spartans, who relied on offense from Sloan Brown and Breydon Congo to keep pace with Sacred Heart Prep following a pair of early goals from Gamble, but the Gators withstood every challenge in the second half to secure their fifth victory in the past three seasons against De La Salle.

The seven goals were the lowest offensive output all season for De La Salle, which had scored at least 14 goals in each of its three contests prior to the regional final.

Sacred Heart Prep rebounded from the regular-season setback to the Spartans to win its final seven matches, including a pair of victories against Division 2 regional champion Menlo School.

The Gators also outlasted Miramonte with a 12-11 win in Thursday’s regional semifinals, with Gamble and Marcin both scoring three goals apiece, in addition to Carrington and Harris each scoring twice.

Menlo School boys water polo | Photo courtesy of Menlo School

Menlo School 12, Clovis 6

Hunter Coleman had five goals for the Knights (22-10), who captured the first Division 2 regional championship in program history at Dunlevie Aquatic Center in Atherton.

Adam Afar and Calvin Barad both scored twice for Menlo School, which received 13 saves from Connor Burks, who held Clovis (25-8) scoreless in the fourth quarter to punctuate the victory.

Alex Stoffel contributed a goal, two assists and two steals for the Knights, with Jackson Coleman recording six steals, along with a goal and two assists.

Lincoln Bott also scored for Menlo, which built a 7-3 halftime advantage.

Clovis captured the Division 3 regional title last season and was attempting to become only the second boys water polo program to win Northern California crowns in multiple divisions, along with Campolindo.

Ripon 16, Los Altos 10

The Indians (29-6) built a 6-1 lead in the opening quarter, including a 5-meter penalty shot by Brody Biedermann, and never relinquished control, capturing their first Division 3 regional championship in program history at Dunlevie Aquatic Center in Atherton.

The 16 goals are the most by any team in the Division 3 regional final.

Ripon scored 47 goals in three regional matches, including an 11-10 victory against San Jose Valley Christian in Thursday’s regional semifinals, with Matt Lee scoring the winning goal with 5.6 seconds remaining for the Indians.

Los Altos (24-9), also making its debut in a regional final, had a six-match winning streak halted.