Santa Barbara High’s Nate Hunter considers his options on Friday in front of Servite’s Brian LaPlante.
Santa Barbara High won its fourth straight water polo match on Friday, putting away visiting Servite 13-8 in a non-league decision.
The Dons, which took a 4-0 lead after the first quarter, benefited from eight different goals scorers.
“A lot of people scored, a lot of people getting assists and we all played really good defense,” explained Cristian Bridley of the Dons’ performance. “The second half we let it down a little bit – got a little lazy – but we brought it back and pulled it out.”
Santa Barbara allowed four goals in the second quarter. The Dons were leading 7-2 before giving up two late goals before halftime.
“I was a little more concerned because I felt like we gave them a lot of energy,” said Dons head coach Mark Walsh. “But we came out at the start of the third and did a really good job.”
The Dons outscored Servite 5-1 in the third quarter to take a 12-5 lead before giving back a couple in the final period.
Bridley and Evan Robertson led Santa Barbara in scoring with three goals each. Peter Loomis scored twice, with Preston Schlagel, Skyler Mathews, Spencer Smith, Connor McManigal and Nate Hunter adding one each.
Schlagel and Robertson recorded a team high in assists with three.
Patrick Harding led Servite with three goals. Max Weber and Stephen Marcin contributed two more each.
The result completes a 3-0 week for the Dons that included Channel League victories over Buena and San Marcos. Santa Barbara (10-4, 3-0) plays again on Tuesday against rival Dos Pueblos.
“(Dos Pueblos) always play well against us,” Walsh said. “We’re excited about playing them on Tuesday.”
