The562’s coverage of aquatic sports in Long Beach is sponsored by the Aquatic Capital of America Foundation.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
The 2023-24 girls’ water polo season came to an end for Long Beach on Thursday, as the Wilson Bruins dropped their playoff opener in the CIF-SS Open Division bracket.
The Bruins traveled to play the unbeaten, top-seeded, defending CIF champions from Orange Lutheran, resulting in a 14-9 defeat at Orange Coast College. Wilson fared better in its second meeting with the Lancers this season, after suffering an 18-6 setback back on Jan. 12.
This was Wilson’s first ever appearance in the 8-team Open Division bracket, which was added to the CIF-SS playoffs starting with the 2021-22 season.
The Bruins end their season at 19-8, while OLu improved to 26-0 with the win.
Elsewhere in local girls’ water polo, the Millikan Rams suffered a 15-10 loss against Schurr in the first round of the Division 1 playoffs on Wednesday. The other Long Beach team was the Poly Jackrabbits, who dropped a narrow 11-10 decision to Irvine in the Division 2 wild card round.
