The VC women's water polo team put up a great fight Friday afternoon, but ultimately fell in the Southern California Regional Playoffs quarterfinal round. The No. 5-seeded Pirates were within one goal, 54-, at halftime before No. 4 Long Beach pulled away in the third quarter. Megan Findlay led Ventura (20-7) with four goals while Lauren Mora scored twice. Fiona Watkins had a goal with five steals and Katie Falls recorded eight saves in goal.
Twice in the early going the Pirates dropped a goal but came right back to tie the score, with Mora scoring each time. The Findlay scored twice in the final minute of the period to lift Ventura to a 4-2 advantage at the quarter break.
Long Beach turned up the defense in the second quarter, holding VC scoreless. They also managed to find the inside of the cage three times to take a 5-4 margin into halftime.
The Pirates' hopes of a semifinal berth came crashing down in the third period as the Vikings scored six of the seven goals in the period. Watkins had VC's lone score of the quarter and the Pirates trailed 11-5 headed into what would be the Pirates' final eight minutes of the season.
LBCC extended their lead to 13-5 before Findlay found the net, and Anna Lowe also scored a goal in the final stanza. The Pirates season came to an end by a final score of 17-9.
But what a season it was for the Pirates. Rising as high as No. 7 in the state polls, VC won 20 games for the first time since 2016 and for the fourth time in program history. The Pirates also returned to the Western State Conference championship game for the first time since 2018.There were definitely experiences in 2021 on which coach Linda Wright and the Pirates can build upon for 2022.