Water Polo Game Summaries

North Allegheny traveled to Erie, PA to take part in the Erie Challenge over the weekend. The NA boys swept their schedule going 2-0 on the weekend while the girls went 0-3.

Girls

The NA girls dropped a 15-5 match against Germantown to get the tournament going. Margarita Tokareva had three goals while Sania Bedi and Vania Rathee each scored. Rathee had three steals while Sania Bedi had two. Myra Anand made four saves.

Against Muhlenberg, North Allegheny fell by a score of 15-7. Tokareva and Lila Sonaer each had two goals while Siya Bhonsale, Bedi and Selin Emekter all had goals. Bedi had two assists while Bhonsale had two steals. Anand made four saves in net.

In the Governor Mifflin game, the Tigers were upended 15-2. Tokreva and Bedi were the goal scorers. Bhonsale made three steals while Bedi and Sonaer had two. Anand made three saves.

Boys

The NA boys opened the tournament with a 14-12 victory over Germantown. Filip Malezanov had seven goals and two steals. Noah Cochrane, Nathan Bauer, Chace Li, Eddie Sanan and Corbin Smith all scored. Bryce Miller dished out three assists and had three steals. Gannon Brooks made four saves in net.

The Tigers rolled over Muhlenberg in their second game defeating them 21-11. Malezanov scored 10 goals, had five assists and five steals to lead North Allegheny. Li found the back of the net three times while Max LaFuria scored twice. Cochrane, Bauer, Jacob Shaw, Stephen Somple and Miller also scored. Li dished out four assists while Miller had three helpers and two steals. Smith added two assists.

Up Next

The NA boys improve their record to 9-8 overall. The girls fall to 1-15. The Tigers return to action on Friday when they travel to Wilson High School to take part in the Western Conference Finals over the weekend.

North Allegheny traveled to McDowell High School to take on the Trojans in a Western Conference matchup on Wednesday night. The Tigers left Erie with a split as the boys defeated McDowell, 15-3 while the girls fell by a score of 14-8.

For the girls, Margarita Tokareva had five goals. Karuna Ghuman, Lila Sonaer and Vania Rathee all had markers. Sonaer also had two assists. Selin Emekter, Siya Bhonsale and Rathee all had three steals. Sania Bedi dished out three assists. Myra Anand made nine saves in net.

On the boys side, Filip Malezanov led the way with seven goals and five steals. Bryce Miller had two goals and two steals while Sebastian Kynaston, Nathan Bauer, Max LaFuria, Jacob Saw, Chace Li and Stephen Somple all scored. Noah Cochrane had two assists and two steals. Kynaston dished out two assists as well. Luke Maxwell had three steals while Miller and Corbin Smith each had two thefts. Gannon Brooks made nine saves while Patrick Snyder had three.

The NA boys improves to 7-8 overall. The girls fall to 1-12. The Tigers will be back in action in this weekend when they return to Erie to take part in the Erie Challenge. Friday will be at McDowell while Saturday will be at Cathedral Prep.

North Allegheny traveled to Cumberland Valley High School over the weekend to take part in the Screamin’ Eagle Tournament.

Girls

North Allegheny opened tournament play against the host Eagles of Cumberland Valley, a match they lost 12-2. Lila Sonaer had both goals. Sania Bedi and Vania Rathee each had two steals. Myra Anand made two saves in net.

The Tigers started Saturday with a matchup with Exeter. NA fell 10-0 in that match. Bedi and Rathee each had two steals again.

North Allegheny finished the tournament with a 13-6 loss the Hill School. Selin Emekter had three goals while Siya Bhonsale, Sonaer and Margarita Tokareva all added goals. Bhonsale had two assists and two steals. Anand made four saves.

Boys

The Tigers opened the tournament by playing the hosts Cumberland Valley. NA fell in that match up by a score of 14-6. Filip Malezanov had three goals while Chace Li, Eddie Sanan and Bryce Miller all found the back of the net. Gannon Brooks made seven saves in net while Patrick Snyder had two.

North Allegheny started play on Saturday with a showdown against Exeter. The Tigers would bounce back to win 15-9. Malezanov netted 10 goals in the match to go along with two assists and four steals. Miller had three goals, three assists and two steals. Max LaFuria and Li each scored as well. LaFuria had two steals. Brooks made 10 saves.

NA would finish tournament play with a 10-8 loss to Episcopal Academy. Malezanov scored five goals and had three steals. Li netted two goals while Stephen Somple added a marker. Brooks made five saves.

Up Next

The NA Girls record is now 1-11 on the season. The boys record is 6-8. The Tigers return to action on Wednesday when both teams travel to McDowell to take on the Trojans with the girls playing at 5 p.m. and the boys playing at 6 p.m.

By Randy Gore

The North Allegheny boys’ water polo team won for the fourth time in the last five tries with a dominant 17-9 victory over visiting Cathedral Prep on Tuesday night.

The Ramblers entered the contest on a four-game winning streak, but the Tigers pounced on their foe early and often on the strength of a nine-goal performance from junior Filip Malezanov. The Tigers built a 10-2 lead by halftime, thanks to six first-half goals by Malezanov and three straight by senior Bryce Miller to end the second period. With a hat trick, a bevy of assists, and stellar defense against one of the state’s top players, Miller was named Wright Automotive Player of the Match on Senior Night.

Cathedral Prep sophomore Lochlan Snider-Mills, an all-state honorable mention last season, opened the second half with three consecutive goals to give the Ramblers life, trimming the NA lead to 10-5. Despite a seven-goal effort by Snider-Mills, the Ramblers would not get any closer as the Tigers pulled away for a 17-9 win.

While Malezanov and Miller spearheaded the NA charge, sophomore Chace Li scored a pair of goals, freshman Sebastian Kynaston scored his first career goal, and sophomores Noah Cochrane and Luke Maxwell also found the back of the net. In net, sophomore goalie Gannon Brooks made several top-shelf saves to earn the victory.

Following the varsity game and midway through the JV contest, the North Allegheny seniors were honored on both the boys’ and girls’ teams. Miller and Ekgara Sanan of the NA boys, and Sania Bedi and Lila Sonaer of the NA girls, were all recognized for their outstanding careers.

With the win, the North Allegheny boys’ team improves to 5-6 on the season, while Cathedral Prep drops to 5-10 overall. The Tigers will next take part in the Screamin’ Eagle Tournament at Cumberland Valley this weekend.

The North Allegheny water polo team hosted the McDowell Trojans on Tuesday and came away with a doubleheader split. The NA boys’ team earned a dominant 20-8 victory, while the NA girls’ team fell by a 14-7 decision.

The boys’ contest started the festivities, and the Tigers wasted little time as junior Max LaFuria converted a steal into a goal just 15 seconds into the game for an immediate 1-0 lead.  The opening seconds set the tone for the contest as NA grabbed a 13-5 lead by halftime and coasted in the second half for a 20-8 victory. Junior co-captain Filip Malezanov paced the NA onslaught with a nine-goal performance to garner Wright Automotive Player of the Game honors.

Senior co-captain Bryce Miller was outstanding on defense and also tallied four goals, while LaFuria and Stephen Somple each scored a pair. Other NA goal scorers included Chace Li, Stephen Somple and Luke Maxwell to round out the victory. Sophomore goalie Gannon Brooks got the start and played three strong quarters before giving way to freshman Patrick Snyder in the final stanza.

For McDowell, Brody Caldwell led the visitors with a hat trick.

In the nightcap, the NA Girls trailed 3-1 after three quarters before back-to-back goals by Margarita Tokareva and Selin Emekter tied the score at 3-3 with 5:04 remaining in the second quarter. Tokareva finished the night with a pair of markers, earning her Wright Automotive Player of the Game laurels.

Despite NA’s first-half momentum, McDowell regained control and rattled off seven consecutive goals to take a 10-3 lead by the early stages of the fourth quarter. Seniors Lilly Ulzii and Makenzie Elias led the charge with seven and six goals, respectively, as the Trojans rolled to a 14-7 win.

Along with Tokareva, Emekter also totaled two goals. Down the stretch in the fourth quarter, junior Siya Bhonsale provided some impressive minutes for the younger Tigers with a hat trick.

Following Tuesday’s night’s action, the NA boys’ improve to 4-6 on the season, while the NA girls’ fall to 1-8. The Tigers return to the pool next week at McDowell on Tuesday, October 5.