25 February 2013
Poly 5 Crescenta Valley 10
Skips, lobs, power shots, penalty shots. Poly peppered Crescenta Valley goalie Gabriel Isaacson with shots all game, but hardly any got by her, as the goalie tallied 17 saves for the game. Poly kept it close early after falling behind 3-1 in the first quarter and went into the half behind 4-2 on goals from Julie Swieca (11) and Jacqui Bywater (11). Poly won the drop ball to start the second half and continued in that vein for the rest of the game, controlling Crescenta Valley and the pace of play on both ends of the water. Isaacson proved, as the announcer put it, a “praying mantis in goal,” and allowed only a sweet lob shot from Paizlee Dreyer (12) and another skip shot from Swieca as well as a single late skip shot into the netting for the duration of the second half. After center Shelby Barkley (11) received her third ejection and was forced to sit out, Poly began pushing numbers forward, and Crescenta went on a run of four unanswered goals to make the score far more lopsided than the game play would suggest.
The Lady Bears may have lost the Division 5 finals, but nonetheless had a very successful season, going undefeated in Inland Valley League play and 29-6 overall. Next season should be even better, as the team returns 6 of the 7 starters, the only exception being Dreyer.
update by Isaiah Murtaugh, Sports Editor