Water Polo Secures Spot in CIF Quarterfinals

November 5, 2024

Rams Hold Tight to Defeat Thousand Oaks

The Cate Rams hosted Thousand Oaks High School for a CIF playoff second-round match in boys’ water polo. The game’s final score was a 9-6 victory for Cate.and highly reflective of the back-and-forth action for four straight quarters. The score was tied or within one goal for either team until the three-minute mark of the fourth quarter.  A big momentum play defensively sparked a three-goal unanswered run for Cate and we never looked back.

Christian Busse ’25 and Elliott Paige ’26 each had career games today for the Rams. Busse was two for two on shots with a key exclusion drawn. His second goal came on an alley-oop-esque shot from the post. Elliott scored two fourth-quarter perimeter shots to help us pull away when the game was tight. His defense was on point all game and he had several big-time assists from the right side of the pool. These two were clutch and knocked down big shots when it mattered most. Senior captain Baye Breene had another standout game. The stat book only shows one goal but his impact on both ends of the pool was crucial to our team’s success. He finished with five steals and three assists.  Fletcher Prince ’28 (3) and Sebastian Brine’26 (1) rounded out the scoring for the Rams.

Jae Wykoff ’26 and Andrew Sheshunoff ’27 were huge for us on the defensive end of the pool. Jae was matched up with Thousand Oaks’ leading scorer all game and was able to hold him to just two goals. He finished with four steals. Andrew had eight saves from the cage and the block of the match late in the fourth. In a tie game in the final minutes, Andrew blocked another point-blank shot to secure us the win.

Coach Morrisons Thoughts

I was incredibly proud of this performance by our group. Two other times this season, we were in tie games in the fourth quarter and ended up losing by one. Our team is tough and is figuring out how to close out tight matches. This was a defensive battle and our guys rose to the occasion against a great Thousand Oaks squad.
Looking ahead, we are on the road for our CIF quarter-final game. The Rams are back in the pool next Wednesday for a quarterfinal game at Glendale High School. Be on the lookout for scores. Go Rams!