Porterville stands in way of El Diamante 3-peat

They’re baaack!

All it took was a year and two days and the No. 1 Porterville girls’ water polo team is seeing deja vu — playing for a Division II Valley championship against a few familiar faces in No. 2 El Diamante.

Didn’t we do this already? Did the current Panthers block out the trauma of falling, 6-4, to a loaded Miners team that graduated two All-Americans, or do they still remember?

“Very well,” Porterville driver Jenna Morris assured. “It was a very sad day and I was crying.”

Just about everyone on the Panthers’ side was. But few things motivate more than revenge.

“I’m glad we got El D,” Morris added. “I’m excited.”

Rewind back to the beginning of the season and you’d be hard-pressed to convince anyone that the 24-1 (10-0 EYL) Panthers would be right back here, fighting for their third Valley championship in five years tonight at Granite Hills at 6 p.m.

Six seniors departed from a squad that finished 27-2, adding instead two sophomores and four freshman — three of which are still only 14 years old.

Porterville hole set Coriann Snyder, who had the unsavory task of replacing All-American Kimber Methvin, certainly had her doubts.

“We didn’t know what to expect with so many new people having to fill in,” she said. “You see the freshmen and you think, ‘This should be interesting.’ And then you see them making these shots and these passes... You expect the worst at first and then it’s like, ‘Where did that come from?’”

Out of nowhere, apparently. Or maybe the Panthers just never left. Tonight will be their fourth trip back to the finals in five years.

“(Porterville) coach (Richard) Taylor definitely came in and developed the program to what it is today,” Snyder said.

During his near two decades at the helm, Taylor hesitates to compare each year’s teams and chooses to focus on the unique sets of strengths each team brings. But he momentarily relented during the girls’ final practice on Monday night, admitting that the 2009 Panthers are “very special.”

“I think they’re as good as last year; I have no doubt. We’re at the same place as they were as far as getting to the championship game,” Taylor said. “If they win the championship, we’ll say they’re better. They accomplished more.”

Snyder hasn’t done too bad for herself. The senior is typically the leading scorer of the game — by the time she sits down at the end of the first quarter.

Playing in Methvin’s shadow last year, Snyder learned to be patient for her time to come.

“I knew Coach was looking at me to fill in for hole set and I thought, ‘I can do this,’” Snyder said. “I know I didn’t have to be as good as Kimber and that I would just be solid. I didn’t have to live up to her or what she did.”

For extra preparation over the summer, Snyder trained in the Olympic Development Program in Modesto and competed in the Junior Olympics in Clovis. The hard work has paid off and she’ll be heading to Long Beach State next fall where she’ll play for a consistent top-20 program.

“We are missing the star we had in Kimber, but Coriann stepped up,” Taylor said. “Kyla (Hill) stepped up, Jenna stepped up, Raven (Kapphahn) stepped up. I’ve got more senior leadership, more seniors who are doing things. Kyla’s been scoring almost as many goals; people don’t realize that, but she has.”

Hill is often the go-to weapon opponents have to deal with should they choose to take Snyder out of the game.

“I think we have more threats this year,” Hill said. “It was a lot of strict role-playing last year. But now we’ve played together so long we know each other’s weaknesses and strengths. I know how to pass to Cori, when to pass to Cori, I know what her eyes say if she wants it or not.

“Jenna’s developed into our defensive star,” she continued. “I’ve gotten better on offense and moving (the ball) around more. Instead of having one person that was our offense, we all feel like it’s our job to contribute more.”

Morris, along with a freshman sister Matlyn, Linna Lasure and Hill’s cousin, Caitlyn, have developed into bona fide scoring options each game.

“This season’s been amazing,” Jenna Morris said. “I didn’t expect this at all — we had six seniors leaving and I thought that was it. I was shocked how much the young kids stepped up. Now, I like this even better.”

How the Panthers view this season, however, still hinges on what happens tonight against a 25-5 Miners squad that has improved continuously throughout the year from the time. Porterville easily handled the WYL champs in a summer scrimmage, then eked out a 10-8 victory over the Miners in the Monache Tournament during the preseason.

Throughout her career, Kyla Hill has developed a healthy respect for them.

“They’re just good, solid players who play polo the way it should be played,” she said. “They’re intense, but not dirty. It’s refreshing. Win or lose, there’s no shame in losing to that team.”

But Hill, who’s already been part of two losing attempts for a Valley championship (one water polo and one basketball), would rather avoid the regret of losing another.

“Now that I’ve lost twice and I know how much it hurts, I don’t wanna be 30 years old and look back and say, ‘Well I lost three Valley championships in high school. It would’ve been nice to win one,’” she said.

According to Taylor, Hill’s odds of finally winning one are 51 percent out of 100.

“We might have a little edge, but we’ve got to execute,” he said. “I don’t think we’ll blow them out. This is gonna be a great game — I would put these two teams in the top five in the Valley (regardless of division).”

Hill said the Miners like to throw confusing schemes including cross patterns and doubling down on the hole set, forcing the Panthers to steer away from man-to-man defense.

“We have to work on our outside shots and finding the open pockets in the defense,” Hill said of one of last year’s faults.

Added Snyder: “It’s a matter of getting everyone else involved because I know they’re probably gonna shut me down.”

While Snyder admitted she was nervous for any surprises Miners coach Jon Conrad might have in store, she expressed confidence in her team like any born leader should.

“I don’t wanna be cocky, but I do think we can win,” she said. “If we play our best game, we’re going to win.”

If they don’t, it could be another sad day in Panthers history.

“I’m gonna miss (playing water polo) a lot,” Jenna Morris said. “It becomes part of your life. I’ll probably cry anyway. Hopefully tears of joy.”

Dynasty vs. Dynasty

Panthers get Valley-title rematch

with Miners

When: 6 p.m., today

Where: Granite Hills High School

Who: No. 2 El Diamante (25-5, 12-0 WYL) at No. 1 Porterville (24-1, 10-0 EYL)

What’s at Stake: Division II Valley Championship

Key Players: Coriann Snyder, Jenna Morris, Kyla Hill, Raven Kapphahn

El Diamante: Bailey Wickliffe, Alyson Huber, Ashlee Smith

Last Year: Miners won 6-4 to claim 2008 title

Miners won the 2007 and 2008 titles while Panthers grabbed hardware in 2005 and 2006