Tigers Roll Ramblers For Water Polo DH Sweep
by Randy Gore
Two days after hosting the annual Tiger Classic over the weekend, the North Allegheny water polo team returned to the NASH natatorium for an impressive sweep over Western Conference foe Cathedral Prep. The Lady Tigers earned a 12-5 win over the visiting Ramblers, while the NA boys routed CP 17-9.
The festivities began with the girls’ water polo contest that saw the Tigers and Ramblers duel to a 4-4 tie late in the second quarter. However, junior Tori Tieppo netted her third goal of the first half with 30 seconds left before intermission, vaulting NA in front, 5-4.
The late marker by Tieppo sparked an 8-0 run as the Tigers buried the Ramblers under an avalanche of second-half goals. On her way to Wright Automotive Player of the Game honors, Tieppo tallied a game-high four goals while adding three assists and a steal.
Junior Bella Spino notched a hat trick, a team-high five assists and a team-best three steals, while fellow junior Mikaela Dassanaike posted a pair of goals. Seniors Ava Sharar, May Coffman and Lily Tang all netted one goal apiece in the victory. In net, junior Katherine Vales made 11 saves to earn the victory.
In the nightcap, the NA boys’ water polo team opened up a 9-3 lead by halftime, sparked in part by a first-half hat trick by freshman phenom Tabari Morgan. After a goal by senior Caden Currykosky improved the NA advantage to 10-3 just 13 seconds into the third quarter, Cathedral Prep rebounded with back-to-back goals by Callum Snider-Mills and Owen Carson, cutting the NA lead to 10-5 with 5:40 left in the period.
The goals by Snider-Mills and Carson were a mirage, however, as junior Callan Bunger took over the contest. Scoring from a variety of different positions in the pool, Bunger scored four consecutive goals to stretch the NA lead to 14-5. Bunger finished with six goals, three assists and two steals to earn Wright Automotive Player of the Game recognition.
The spurt by Bunger led to a 6-0 run for the Tigers and a commanding 16-5 lead following three quarters of play. NA called off the dogs in the fourth quarter and cruised to a 17-9 win.
Along with big nights from Bunger and Morgan, Currykosky and senior Grant Regule netted two goals each. Also touching the scoresheet were junior Mason Shantz, freshman Filip Malezanov, junior Logan Purnell and sophomore Bryce Miller with one marker each. In between the pipes, junior Michael Stefanko reeled in seven saves to secure the win.
With the sweep, the North Allegheny boys improve to 5-0 overall, while the Lady Tigers even their record at 2-2. Both teams return to action this weekend at the Erie Challenge.
