Gators girls' polo overwhelm Monarchs in CCS Open Division semifinal

And when you really focus on the Gators’ in the defensive end of the pool, they become even more impressive. Such was the case when top-seeded SHP hosted No. 5 Mitty is a Central Coast Section Open Division semifinal. The Gators completely shut down the Monarchs on the defensive end and the SHP offense was as clinical as ever as they cruised to a 18-4 victory Wednesday night in Atherton.

“We’ve been really adamant about our defense,” said Adriana Reed, a 2007 SHP alum and interim head coach who took over the varsity team at the end of September.

“You can wear people down and dictate flow and tempo (with a strong defensive game),” Reed added.

With the win, the Gators advance to the CCS Open Division title game for the fifth straight season. Waiting for them is nemesis and third-seeded Soquel (20-8), who they will face for the title Saturday at a time and place to be determined.

This will the fourth straight championship game meeting between the Gators and Knights. SHP has beaten Soquel in the last two championship games, with the Knights winning back-to-back titles over the Gators in 2021 and 2022.

Soquel beat No. 2 Leland, 18-12, in the other semifinal match.

It took a few minutes for SHP (24-2) to get fully locked in on the defensive end against Mitty. The Gators took a quick 1-0 lead on a power-play goal from Casey Coleman in the set, but Mitty (19-6) quickly answered. The Monarchs also earned a power-play opportunity in the opening minute and while they didn’t score during the man-advantage, technically, Mailani Lavaka did find the back of the net shortly thereafter to tie the game at 1-all less than a minute into the match.

SHP was denied on a second power-play chance and Mitty had an excellent look at taking a lead when Maddie Caputo drew a 5-meter penalty shot.

But Gators goalie Ellie Brush made the save and when Kiernan Hogan scored a power-play goal on a Lauren Rossi assist, it gave the SHP a 2-1 lead and the Gators were off to the races.

The Gators would go on to score three more unanswered goals, including a Maddie Colabianchi steal, drive and goal, but the Monarchs still had some hope as Caputo scored in the final minute and Mitty trailed just 5-2 after the first quarter.

It would be the last goal the Monarchs would score until the fourth quarter as SHP shut them out in the second and third periods. The Gators stayed methodical offensively in the second quarter, as they managed just three goals, but still led 8-2 at halftime.

In the second half, SHP started to get their running game going, so to speak. Having worn out the Monarchs, the Gators were constantly on the fastbreak in the second half. Whether it resulted in fastbreak goals or allowed them to get into the offensive sets quicker, the Gators were playing at a speed that Monarchs couldn’t match.

The Gators would score five goals in a quarter for the second time in the match: Caroline Selna scored in front to open the second-half scoring; Sophia Toyas converted a cross-pool pass from Cal McIlhenny; Coleman added a second goal from the hole set; Rossi scored off an assist from goalie Brush, while Violet Cullen had the highlight goal of the game, slamming home a backhand shot from 2 meters out to give the Gators a 13-2 lead after three period.

It was more of the same in the fourth as SHP scored five goals for the third time in four quarters. In all, 10 players scored for the Gators, led by Coleman, who finished with four goals and an assist. Hogan, Rossi, Selna and Cullen all had two goals apiece. Each SHP goalie — starter Brush and backup Zoe Kerna — had an assist and blocked a Mitty 5-meter penalty shot.

“We’re blessed to have so many talented players on offense. If you think you have one covered, here comes another one,” Reed said. “Finishing (with goals) is the reward for the tough defense.”