Playing in the “Group of Death” at the South Coast Tournament, Santa Barbara High’s water polo team ran into a dead-eye shooter in its opening game.
Foothill’s Paul Reynolds poured in eight goals to lead his team to a 9-4 win over the Dons.
“They have a special player,” coach Mark Walsh said. “He’s the No. 1 recruit in the country. He’s really good. He scored a lot of goals agains us a couple of years ago in the CIF playoffs when he was a sophomore.”
Walsh noted that not even double-team defenses couldn’t stop Reynolds.
Santa Barbara fell behind 6-2 but it cut the deficit to 6-4 on goals by Preston Schlagel and Skyler Matthews in the third quarter.
Reynolds, however, reasserted himself and Foothill pulled way in the final stanza.
“He’s very crafty with the ball and he can score every way possible. He did everything.”
The other teams in Santa Barbara’s bracket include Mater Dei, Los Alamitos, Laguna Beach and Dana Hills. Mater Dei is coached by former Dos Pueblos star Chris Segesman.
