Girls Water Polo: Fenwick overcomes slow start to knock off Fremd

Updated: May 18, 2012 9:17PM

Coming in as the defending state champion, Fenwick’s knew it was going to be challenged by Fremd — a team it had beaten twice in the regular season — in Friday’s state quarterfinals.

Through the first five minutes of the game, however, they had no idea how much they were going to be tested. Fremd roared out to a 3-0 lead before Fenwick could get its bearings. They eventually got things going in a 12-6 win, setting up a date with New Trier in Saturday’s 12: 45 p.m. semifinal.

“It’s hard to beat a team three times,” Fenwick coach John Wagner said. “We knew they were going to do something to come out. We didn’t know what. They punched us in the mouth and it was nice to see that we reacted to it. We didn’t lose our composure. We did what we do and whittled it away.”

Amy McEllen got the Vikings (27-6) on the board quickly, scoring 26 seconds in. Sam del Prado then scored a pair of goals to give Fremd a 3-0 lead with 3:03 left in the first.

“I was actually kind of surprised by the start we had to be honest, but it was good,” Fremd coach Ray Roth said. “The start they had and the way they played, that’s what I was hoping for.”

Wagner told his team after the first quarter that if they were tied at the half, he would be happy. The Friars (30-3) did him one better. Two goals each from Colleen Barron and Maureen Barron and one from Cara Borkovec gave Fenwick a 5-4 lead the half, a lead it would never relinquish.

“We knew it was going to be a hard game going into it, but then seeing how well they played at the start kind of opened our eyes a little bit,” Colleen Barron said. “We know they’re a very good team, but I was surprised they came out that strong. I think we just took a little time to get going.”

With the lead in tow, the Friars dominated the second half, outscoring the Vikings 7-2. Colleen Barron led the way with four goals, Maureen Barron added three and Borkovec and Paige Kohut each scored twice for the winners.

Now the Friars will have a chance to defend their state championship Saturday, though they are guaranteed another state trophy already.

“It’s a lot to play for,” Colleen Barron said. “We have a lot to lose. We just want to come out and do the best we can.”

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