Presley Jones produces 5-meter penalty shot in sudden-death overtime to lift Laguna Beach girls water polo team to eighth title with 10-9 victory against San Clemente in CIF-Southern Section Division 1 final

WALNUT – From the most humble beginnings to the happiest of conclusions, Laguna Beach capped an impressive turnaround in the most impactful manner possible Saturday to win its eighth CIF-Southern Section girls water polo title.

Presley Jones converted a 5-meter penalty shot to produce the golden goal with 1:09 remaining in the first three-minute sudden-death overtime period to lift the Breakers to a 10-9 victory against San Clemente in the Division 1 championship match at Mt. San Antonio College.

Post-match interviews

Jones joined former Laguna Beach standout Tea Poljak in scoring the winning goal in sudden-death overtime in a section final for the Breakers.

Poljak produced the golden goal with 14 seconds left in sudden-death overtime in the 2019 Division 1 championship to lift Laguna Beach to a 9-8 victory against Corona del Mar.

Jones, a UCLA commit, also scored the winning goal Jan. 25 in sudden-death overtime for the Breakers (20-11) in a 7-6 victory against Santa Ana Foothill in the Newport Invite.

Laguna Beach also outlasted JSerra 11-10 in sudden-death overtime Jan. 27, allowing the Breakers to find reassurance in an otherwise stressful situation Saturday.

It seemed only fitting that it required extra work for Laguna Beach to win its first Division 1 crown since 2020, as the Breakers overcame six consecutive losses to start the season, including a 12-8 setback Dec. 5 against San Clemente (22-9).

Laguna Beach girls water polo team | Photo courtesy of Laguna Beach

Kara Carver, a USC signee, missed three matches early in the season, including the loss to the Tritons, but the senior standout was responsible Saturday for drawing the foul on a counterattack that led to Jones producing the winning goal by firing a 5-meter penalty shot past San Clemente goalkeeper Sophia Reardon inside the left post to set off the Breakers’ celebration.

Carver scored a match-high five goals, Jones added four goals and Brooke Schneider contributed a goal for Laguna Beach, which matched Santa Barbara and Corona del Mar by winning an eighth section title.

Neither team led by more than two goals the entire contest, with Carver giving the Breakers an 8-7 lead with 1:22 remaining in regulation, before Hazel Thrash rallied to tie the score 30 seconds later for the Tritons.

Jones scored early in the first three-minute extra session to put Laguna Beach back in front, but San Clemente responded again in the second overtime period, as Talyn Pelkey scored with 57 seconds left to pull the Tritons even at 9-9 and force sudden-death in the Division 1 final for the second time in three years.

Santa Margarita secured a 15-14 sudden-death overtime victory against Long Beach Wilson in the 2023 Division 1 championship match.

Siena Jumani, a UC Santa Barbara commit, recorded eight saves for the Breakers, who produced their second victory this season against San Clemente, including a 12-10 win Jan. 4 at the Bill Barnett Holiday Cup.

Phoebe Demoss, who produced nine goals Tuesday in an 11-7 semifinal win against Alta Loma, scored twice against Laguna Beach, along with Macey Punak, Pelkey and Thrash for the Tritons, who also received a goal from Emmi Franklin.

Since capturing the Division 2 crown in 2011, San Clemente has lost its past four finals appearances, including 2015, 2019 and 2020, with three of the setbacks coming by one-goal margins.

In addition to its eighth division title, Laguna Beach added to its records with 63 section playoff victories and 638 all-time wins as a program.

Corona del Mar ranks second with 61 section playoff wins and Santa Ana Foothill is No. 2 all-time as a program with 634 victories.