MURRAY — Kearns water polo teams swept the state tournament for the second consecutive year, defeating both the boys' and girls' teams of Skyline in a pair of hard-fought championship games.
The Lady Cougars got things rolling early, downing arch-rival Skyline, 4-3, Saturday in a defensive struggle that wasn't decided until the final minute. The boys followed suit soon afterward by out-muscling the undersized Eagles in a 10-7 victory.
"We're obviously very happy right now," Kearns head coach Brad Percy said. "We feel very fortunate to have come out on top in both of these games."
While "fortunate" is not a word that most coaches would use to describe a team's performance, it certainly fits in Percy's case. His Cougars stared defeat in the face on several occasions over the course of the afternoon, but somehow managed to come out on top each and every time.
The girls' final, for example, was tied at three and looked to be headed for overtime until Shandi Kelbaugh scored the Cougars' first and only goal of the second half on a well-placed lob with just under thirty seconds in regulation.
In addition to sealing the win for Kearns, Kelbaugh's buzzer-beater put the kibosh on a furious Skyline comeback that saw the Eagles tie the game on three unanswered goals after sleepwalking their way to a 3-0 first-half deficit.
All things considered, the Eagles were lucky to be down by only three after playing as poorly as they did in the first two quarters. Were it not for the play of All-State goalie Sara Nicponski, the Cougars' lead could have been much greater.
"We had a really good first half," said Percy. "We were playing good defense and making plays on the offensive end. But Skyline came out with more energy in the second half, and that's when we started to struggle."
The boys final followed essentially the same script, with Kearns jumping out to a 4-0 first quarter lead. The Eagles answered with three goals in the second quarter, bringing them within one goal by halftime.
The see-saw battle continued for most of the second half and could have continued indefinitely were it not for a controversial goal that was ultimately attributed to Adam Huff of Kearns.
The goal, which Huff scored as one official was in the process of calling an exclusion foul, effectively took the wind out of Skyline's sails and gave the Cougars a two-goal lead that they would never relinquish. By that point, Kearns' superior depth had begun to take its toll on the Eagles, who struggled to keep up with their well-rested opponent.
Skyline's fatigue became even more obvious in waning minutes of the fourth quarter as uncharacteristic mistakes caused them to squander several scoring opportunities.
All State Water Polo selections
GIRLS:
First Team:
Natalie Edge, Kearns, MVP
Annika Bergsen, Kearns
Kristina Evans, Skyline
Megan Raby, Kearns
Marisa Dobie, Hunter
Shandi Kelbaugh, Kearns
Julie Lamb, Skyline
Goalie: Sara Nicponski, Skyline
Second Team:
Ashley Spicer, Brighton
Teri Elliot, Skyline
Alyssa Woodliff, Skyline
Kellie Coombs, Hunter
Lauren Roth, Brighton
Addie Marsh, Brighton
Goalie: Stephanie Fredsall, Kearns
Honorable Mention:
Jenna Hallesy, Weber
Erica Steenblick, Jordan
Christine Sloan, Weber
Alyson Daniel, Hunter
Whitney Thaxton, Jordan
Lisa Broadhead, Hunter
Goalie Lou Canfield
BOYS:
First Team:
Adam Huff, Kearns, MVP
Grahm Smith, Skyline
Riley McQuivey, Jordan
Taylor Bennion, Brighton
Steven Rij, Kearns
Teddy Zhang, Skyline
Goalie: Mason Childs, Skyline
Second Team:
Ben Robson, Skyline
Nate Swallow, Skyline
Patrick Roth, Brighton
Josh Olsen, Hunter
Seth Huff, Kearns
Goalie: Jeff Green, Hunter
Honorable Mention:
Corey Ward, Weber
John Ellis, Brighton
Fred Gatti, Jordan
Judd Player, Jordan
Kyle Kuhn, Skyline
Goalie: Joe Coupal, Brighton