It didn’t take long for Wilson’s boys’ water polo team to assert its dominance during Monday night’s Moore League opener against longtime rivals Long Beach Poly. Wilson’s Zac Crenshaw secured a hat trick within the first 2:08 of game time as the Bruins scored early and often in a convincing 24-5 victory at Cabrillo High School.
“Our guys that are juniors, they’re big, they’re strong, they’re tough, and they showed that tonight,” said Wilson head coach Jeff Nesmith. “They were so hungry to play, there was that crazy excitement for these guys and it’s just really good to see.”
Crenshaw ended up with a team-high seven goals on the night, one ahead of junior Gray Carson who netted a half dozen. Kade Margain added a pair of goals to go with three assists and goalie Brady Simon made five saves in the cage.
The Bruins were deadly on the counter and were able to capitalize quickly on breakaways. The Bruins outshot the Jackrabbits 33-14 on the night, leading 9-2 after the first quarter and 14-3 at the half.
“It felt really good just to play again,” Crenshaw said after the game. “The adrenaline obviously was there for the first half. We got off to a quick start, put a couple goals away and coasted it for the rest of the game.”
While it was a tough night on the scoreboard for the Jackrabbits, head coach Ish Pluton was pleased with his team’s effort and intensity, which remained consistent throughout the game.
“I really loved how my team performed,” said Pluton. “They were pushing the whole game, they were playing with so much heart, and they were clearly stoked on competition. Both teams were; you could feel it in the air, and they vibed off that. They never slowed down all game, and that’s all a coach can ask for when we’re up against a team that’s hand over fist better than us. Their mindset was, ‘This is our opportunity, let’s go hard, let’s go after it.’ It was great.”
Chaz Pruett scored a pair of goals to lead the scoring for Poly, while Markus Cruz chipped in a goal and two assists for the Jackrabbits. Charlie Lemmis made six stops in the cage.
Wilson will continue its season on Tuesday with a non-league contest against Palos Verdes at 3 p.m. Meanwhile, Poly will be right back at Cabrillo for its next contest, taking on Millikan in a late-night showdown at 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
