SoCal, Vanguard Win 8th Grade Gold in Houston

The top 8th grade water polo teams from across the US descended on Houston this weekend to compete for the USA Water Polo Champions Cup with perennial powerhouse programs Vanguard and SoCal taking gold in both the girls and boys brackets.

On the girls’ side, SoCal Water Polo from Santa Ana, CA fought back from a group round loss to Commerce prevail over Northwood in the closely contested final by a score of 9-8. Northwood worked its way to the final without a loss but SoCal’s tough defense and balance on offense was too much to overcome.

Vanguard Aquatics from Huntington Beach took the boys’ title defeating its OC rival Newport in the final by a score of 11-8. Both programs cruised to the title match but Vanguard was dominant throughout the tournament and they left little doubt about their place as the top program this weekend.

The teams from Texas also fared well this weekend. On the boys side, the Southside Honey Badgers finished the tournament with three straight wins to claim 9th place. Southside notched wins vs West Suburban (Chicago), Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA), and in-state rival Thunder. The Thunder boys claimed 11th place while also claiming victory against West Suburban.

The Thunder girls came away with a 10th place finish, claiming victory over Chicago Park District and the consolidated Lone Star girls which finished in 12th place.