Long Beach water polo continued to impress at the USA Junior Olympics as the LB Vikings Aquatics 18-and-under girls’ team took bronze in the silver bracket of the classic division last week.
The team brought together athletes from Wilson, Millikan, and had representatives from Los Alamitos, Mira Costa and Redondo Union. Competing in the Classic Division’s Silver bracket, the team battled their way through a packed 48-team field and capped the tournament with a come-from-behind win over North Irvine in the third-place game.
“We were down 3–0 early,” said assistant coach Beth Bailey. “That game was a mental battle, especially after already beating them. It was tough to reset and find the motivation again.”
Competing in one of the elite areas of the nation, the team started working at the end of swim season after a majority of the team was done with their high school commitments.
“This summer, we really tried to get all of Long Beach playing together,” Bailey said. “There’s kids at different levels and schools at different levels, but the more competitive it gets across the board, the more fun it becomes.”
While the core of the team was from the Long Beach area, the diversity created a competitive edge as the team practiced with athletes from various schools.
Wilson’s Grace Walker and Emily Cribari were major contributors for the team as they bounced back from a couple tough losses to land in the bronze medal match. Teagan Shandrew-Pearsall was a force in the cage to strengthen the Bruins’ core on the team.
Along with Walker and Cribari, Millikan’s Shae Parkhill and Kyley Seeds made the team’s transition easy after being rivals in high school.
“You come in with your school friends,” Bailey said. “But by the end, we had five girls from Wilson and five girls from Millikan, and they were all teammates. They forgot about high school. They played for each other.”
Bailey won’t forget how the team grew during the 4-day tournament and is looking forward to see how the girls do when the next season starts.
“As coaches, the outcome is great but it’s the growth we care about most,” Bailey said. “Watching them commit, improve, support each other—those relationships will last a lifetime.”
Roster:
Taylor Williams (Wilson)
Emily-Elizabeth Cribari (Wilson)
Catalina Marian (Mira Costa)
Emma McCracken (Mira Costa)
Talia Ramsey
Remy Errett (Redondo Union)
Shae Parkhill (Millikan)
Lacey Aquaro
Finley Murphy (Redondo Union)
Olivia Toumajian (Millikan)
Eden Dunn (Wilson)
Kyley Seeds (Millikan)
Grace Walker (Wilson)
Lilla Angelov (Millikan)
Evelyn Edlund
Teagan Shandrew-Pearsall (Wilson)
Madison Ly (Los Alamitos)
Brooklyn Winterset (Millikan)
