Miners prey on Panther collapse

None of this was supposed to happen.

Heading into Tuesday night’s anticipated rematch between Porterville and El Diamante for the Division II girls’ water polo Valley championship, the Panthers were considered the favorites.

They had the better record (24-1) to the Miners’ 25-5. They held the No. 1 seed and even home-pool advantage this time (though Porterville coach Richard Taylor would argue that isn’t much of a factor).

But — just like last year — it was the Miners who hoisted their third straight championship plaque after winning 8-6, and the Panthers who were left wondering, “What happened?”

Only it was worse.

“It stings 10 times more than last year,” Porterville’s Coriann Snyder said. “I don’t know what else we could’ve done.”

By the early part of the second quarter, the Panthers had racked up a 5-0 lead and were all but sprinting toward the finish line.

Then the unthinkable happened: They tripped.

“At that point, you’re pretty confident like, ‘We’ve got this,’” Snyder said. “We played so well and then it just came apart. We got too confident and forgot the things we’d worked on.”

Contrary to what the packed crowd gathered at Granite Hills High witnessed on Tuesday night, water polo is not typically a game of huge scoring swings, which makes improbable comebacks even more difficult.

Snyder didn’t hesitate when asked if she’d seen anything like it in her four years of playing the game.

“Never,” she said. “That was great on El Diamante’s part. When you’re up by five in a championship game (and you lose), that’s rare.”

When Snyder fired a rocket from three quarters the length of the pool and found nothing but net as the first quarter buzzer sounded, everything seemed to be going Porterville’s way.

The senior appeared well on her way to another eight-goal performance as she dominated from the hole from the first half. Snyder fought off Miners star Bailey Wickliffe and Shelby Anderson in the hole to score just seconds into the second quarter.

Moments later, Kyla Hill scored from six meters away off a cross pass from Jenna Morris to build the lead to 5-0, prompting El Diamante coach Jon Conrad to call timeout.

Prior to the game, Taylor said the one who worries him most about the Miners is not in the pool, but rather on the sidelines.

“Jon Conrad is excellent,” Taylor said of his counterpart. “He’s very young, but he’s very knowledgeable and he’s always throwing another trick out of his bag.”

Conrad wound up looking like a genius as his girls embarked on an 8-1 run.

El Diamante’s Alyson Huber scored back-to-back goals just before the half to get within 5-3. Teammate Natalie Hallberg first got the Miners on the board when her shot deflected off Snyder’s arm in her attempt for the block, but it sailed past Porterville goalie Raven Kapphahn.

At the start of the second half, Snyder scored her final goal to make it 6-4, but the Panthers were shut out the rest of the way.

Wickliffe scored with a no-look wrap shot from the hole and Huber scored again from the same spot to tie it up at six.

While triple-teamed, Snyder drew a penalty shot but it was blocked by Miners goalie Ashlee Smith. The Panthers also had a couple of opportunities in man-up situations with Wickliffe and Sydney Stephenson each earning kickouts, but shot after shot clanked off the cross bar.

“We had a great start; we just didn’t finish the game,” Taylor said. “Too many times, we hit the bar and just couldn’t put the ball in the cage. They capitalized on our mistakes.”

Perhaps the most controversial incident of the game occurred when a sideline official kicked out Kapphahn one possession for swearing. Typically, the only reason players (much less goalkeepers) draw kickouts is when they accumulate three fouls.

Kapphahn’s absence left an open net for Wickliffe to easily score her fourth and final goal, which put the Miners ahead 7-6 and ultimately turned into the winning goal.

Still, the Panthers had plenty of good looks to score in the fourth quarter as Kapphahn consistently launched the ball down the pool on counter-attacks, placing it perfectly in front of the fast break leader. But Snyder, Marnie Kavern and Matlyn Morris — who scored her lone goal on a similar scenario in the opening seconds of the game — all missed open shots.

“I think we just got too much in a hurry,” Snyder said. “We didn’t take our time and play smart.”

Added Morris, “We tried to keep our heads up as much as we could. (The Miners) play amazing defense and they have a very smart offense. It’s very technical. The coach is smart in knowing who to guard and how to play defense.”

The writing was on the wall when Taylor called his last timeout with 50 seconds remaining as the Panthers were still down by two goals. Though several Panthers appeared on the verge of breaking down, all six field players furiously chased the ball as the Miners played keep-away until the clock ran out.

“We knew it’d be a close game,” Jenna Morris said. “I’m proud of my team. It was an amazing season and I loved playing with these girls.”