The Newport Harbor High boys’ water polo team became the first to hand state power Miramonte of Orinda its first loss of the season Saturday.
There are several reasons why the Sailors won the Memorial Cup Invitational, beating Miramonte, 13-12, in overtime, at Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose.
Being able to keep up offensively helped Newport Harbor (19-6), the defending CIF Southern Section Division I champion, end Miramonte’s winning streak at 22.
The overtime goals scored by Jack Yeager and Zach Osadche played major roles for Newport Harbor, which moved up three spots and is now ranked No. 3 in the CIF Southern Section Division I poll.
The match-tying goal by Zach Lucas late in regulation also helped make it possible.
But what’s left out is Newport Harbor Coach Jason Lynch’s familiarity with four players from Miramonte, the three-time defending CIF North Coast Section champion.
Lynch coached the four on a U.S. National cadet 16-and-under team two years ago.
“It helped,” Lynch said. “I knew what they were going to do. We tried to match up accordingly. We shut down one [player] entirely.”
Lynch is counting on the big wins in the elite tournament against Miramonte (22-1) in the finals and against Back Bay rival Corona del Mar (15-9) in the semifinals to propel the Sailors in the playoffs.
The Division I playoff pairings will be released Sunday at the CIF Southern Section office in Los Alamitos.
Newport Harbor closes out Sunset League play at home today against Marina at 7:20 p.m. With a win, the Sailors will finish in second place at 4-1 behind Los Alamitos.
The Sailors’ regular-season finale is a nonleague match against The Bishop’s of La Jolla on Saturday.
“I think we’re turning the corner here,” said Lynch after beating Miramonte, which had wins against Los Alamitos and El Toro, two teams that have defeated Newport Harbor this season and are ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.
“We took the finals as a good opportunity to show we’re a strong team. There wasn’t a lot of pressure on us, more pressure on [Miramonte]. I’m just proud of the guys.”
Lynch said a mother of one of the Miramonte players he coached congratulated him on the victory.
This year, Sage Hill School finished in third place, instead of second as was the case the past two boys’ water polo seasons in the Orange Coast League.
