Vikings sink Rams in overtime

It was a game that had been circled early in the season as a big game and it didn't disappoint as Puyallup needed a balanced team effort and overtime to edge its cross town rival, Rogers, 10-9, yesterday at the Rogers Aquatic Center. Not playing a game for almost two weeks definitely showed early on for the Vikings as they fell behind the Rams 3-1. Puyallup had its hand full mostly with Maria Schuckova, a foreign exchange student who lit the Vikings up with two quick goals from way outside that hit nothing but the back of the net. Schuckova would add three more scores in the second half but she had to work for them as Hope Mahnken settled and played lock down defense on her and Alex Clark weathered Schuckova's shot barrage in the cage stopping several of her tough to handle skip shots. Puyallup trailed the entire first half but got to within 5-4 at the half thanks to two scores from Katie Hayes, and a goal each from Joanna Boschee' and Brenda Pogue. For the first time all year Hayes took up some of the scoring slack for the Viks as she scored her two first half goals from the outside following Ram ejection fouls. She would add a third goal in the fourth quarter. Puyallup pulled ahead 6-5 with 1:16 left in the third on an incredible shot by a submerged Boschee' who shot it blind into the lower corner, sneaking it past former Viking goalie, Kelsey Hamilton. In the final frame, Puyallup got up two, 8-6 thanks to back to back scores by Sam Evans, who tapped in a miss from the outside and Hayes scored following a Ram turnover. Evans, who hadn't played in two weeks due to a shoulder injury was a nice addition as Puyallup lost Paige Boyer to ejections early in the second half and the Vikings needed other players to fill the void. The Rams butted their way back into the game though with two scores late in the quarter to tie it at 8. The Vikings had a chance to win it with 7 seconds left, but Boschee's shot from two meters just grazed the top of the cage and out of bounds. In overtime it was a test of wills and which team could hang on the longest. Puyallup lead after the first overtime period on a score from Lauren Griffin with 19 seconds left. In the second overtime, Puyallup again went up two goals on a score from Bianca Jimenez. Rogers countered with 1:44 left following a Mahnken ejection. Clark stopped a final Rogers threat with 24 seconds left as she ran the clock down giving Rogers just 1.3 seconds to work with. Following a Ram time out, their final shot fell short, and Puyallup secured its eighth straight win and took a two game lead over the Rams in the race for the SPSL title. Puyallup and Enumclaw are now tied for first with undefeated league records. The teams will meet next Friday at Puyallup.

Puyallup drains Bonney Lake

Puyallup got off to a fast start Thursday afternoon against a vastly improved Bonney Lake squad and earned a 12-5 victory over the Panthers to run its record to 7-0.The Vikings used three goals from Paige Boyer and another from Joanna Boschee' to jump on the Panthers 4-0 after a quarter. While Boyer had the offense under control, Alex Clark was sharp in the cage giving up just one goal in the first half. Hope Mahnken and Katie Hayes was also working hard defensively as they had their hands full with Bonney Lake's double hole set. Boschee' added two hard earned goals in the second quarter against the Panther goalie who dominated the shallow end goal. Her two scores gave the Viks a 6-1 halftime lead. With the Bonney Lake goalie struggling in the deep water, Puyallup rang up four scores in the third quarter. Naomi Smith scored on a fast break pass from Boyer and Brenda Pogue gunned down back to back scores off outlet passes from Clark. Boyer closed out the scoring with a goal with 49 seconds left in the stanza. Boyer and Bianca Jimenez took care of the scoring honors in the fourth quarter with a goal apiece. With the win, Puyallup now heads into spring break all alone in first place in the East Division, but looming ahead is a huge showdown with district rival, Rogers on April 11. Game time is 3 pm at the Rogers pool.

Puyallup shuts out Emerald Ridge, 7-0

The Puyallup Vikings recorded their sixth win in a row with a 7-0 shut out of district rival, Emerald Ridge. Behind Alex Clark's strong play in goal, Puyallup played aggressive defense for the second straight game to win its third game in three days. Feeling the effects of playing three games in three days in three different pools, Puyallup appeared sluggish and were a little sloppy in the first half. Behind goals by Joanna Boschee' and Paige Boyer, the Vikings grinded out a 3-0 halftime lead. While the Viks weren't sharp offensively, they shone on the defensive side as Hope Mahnken and Katie Hayes teamed up to shut down ER's 2 meter play. Lauren Griffin stayed up with ER's speedy Brittany Bushnell to deny the Jaguars an outside threat. The defensive pressure also resulted in several shot clock violations on the Jaguars which Puyallup used in the second half to pull away. The Viking shut out was put to the test with 42 seconds left to play and Puyallup facing an Emerald Ridge power play. Boschee' got a hand on a shot from the top and Clark gobbled up the loose ball and found a streaking Boyer for the final score with 17 seconds left in the game. Puyallup is back in action on March 29 at Sumner against Bonney Lake. Game time is 3:15.

Hornets stings Puyallup; snap winning streak

Everyone knew it would have to end sometime, and the Puyallup girl's water polo team Friday gave it everything they had until the very end in an attempt to extend their 29-game regular season winning streak. The Viks came up just short, dropping a tough and heartbreaking 8-7 decision to Enumclaw. The loss not only snaps the winning streak which dates back to last season, but also puts Puyallup a game back in the race for its second straight league title. Puyallup knew going into the game that it was going to be a close contest and that proved to be just the case. Enumclaw scored 30 seconds into the contest on an uncontested shot. Paige Boyer tied it up on a power play 28 seconds later. Following a Boyer ejection Enumclaw took the lead back with 5:26 left to play in the quarter. It stayed 2-1 until Hope Mahnken drilled home a shot from 5 meters out on another power play with 30 seconds gone in the second quarter. The score remained knotted at two until 2:17 left when the Hornets found the net. Enumclaw then scored two more goals in the next minute to take a commanding 5-2 lead into halftime. Puyallup didn't panic though and showed resolve in the second half to battle back. Its defense was solid all night as Alex Clark was tough in goal and Mahnken and Katie Hayes contested Enumclaw's barrage of outside shots. After the first gimme goal, Puyallup forced the Hornets to earn the rest of their scores. With the defense standing strong, Joanna Boschee' provided what was probably a shot of the year for her, as she faked right, submerged under water and came up left and drained a six meter shot in the upper right corner of the deep end goal. She followed that shot up with a penalty shot that got the Vikings back to 6-5. Even though Puyallup outscored the Hornets in the second half, 5-3, it could never get the game back to even and was forced to play catch up. Boyer got Puyallup within one at 7-6 early in the fourth. The score was clutch as she just re-entered the game after sitting out the majority of the game with two ejections. The Hornets pushed it to 8-6 with 6:18 left after Boschee' was ejected. The Vikings then took a major hit as Boschee' picked up her final ejection foul with 5:53 left to play. The score stayed at 8-6 until Boyer lobbed a score over the outstretched arms of the Hornet goalie to make it 8-7 with 3:43 left. In a frustrating finish, Puyallup had two chances to force overtime. Boyer missed an outside shot with 32 seconds left. And following a delay of game call against Enumclaw, Puyallup had six seconds to get a shot off and Katie Hayes' five meter shot was just wide and Enumclaw's celebration in Puyallup's pool got underway. Puyallup will look to start a new winning streak next Wednesday when Auburn-Riverside comes to town for a 7:30 pm game.

Vikings ship nudges the women of Troy

After a lackluster performance against Sumner on Tuesday, Puyallup jumped all over the Auburn Trojans early on Thursday and then hung on at the end to wrap up its tenth win of the season with a 14-9 victory.The Vikings jumped out to a 4-0 first quarter lead behind two goals by Katie Hayes and a goal each from Joanna Boschee' and Paige Boyer. Puyallup stretched its lead to 8-0 in the second quarter as Boyer tallied 3 goals and Boschee' added one. Alex Clark was strong in the cage as she recorded a first half shutout before giving way to Katie Wells, who tended the second half. Ah, the second half. With the Viks up 11-1 with 4:18 left in the game, Puyallup went to its bench and promptly saw Auburn go on a 9-1 scoring run which saw its 11-1 lead melt down to 12-9 with 1:14 left to play. Clark, playing the field, finally stop the scoring drought with a shot from two meters and Pam Akiona sealed the deal with a push shot from the left side of the goal with just 6 seconds left to play. The win sets up a huge date with Enumclaw, which is also undefeated in league play, on Friday at the Puyallup pool.

Vikings slip and slide past Spartans

It wasn't pretty, but Puyallup overcame a lackluster performance to fend off the Sumner Spartans, 16-10, to record its first sweep of the season. The win also improved the Vikings record to 9-0.Things started off just fine for the Viks as they rolled to a quick 5-0 lead in the first quarter. Paige Boyer and Joanna Boschee' both added two goals each during the fast start. The fast start soon cooled though as Summner scored two goals in the last minute of the quarter to cut the lead to 5-2. The second quarter belonged to Boschee' offensively as the rest of the Vikings struggled with staying off the bottom in the shallow end. Several Puyallup goals were called off by off the bottom calls. In the meantime Sumner cut the Viking lead in half, 8-4, going into halftime. The third quarter saw the Viks emerge from the fog and outscore the Sparts 5-1. Several Vikings got in on the scoring act. Boschee' added her sixth goal of the day and Boyer, Bianca Jimenez, and Brenda Pogue all added a goal each.The fourth frame got a little messy as Hope Mahnken, who had played solid defense all game long, picked up her third ejection foul on a questionable two hand up call and was done for the game. Boyer also picked up her second ejection on the same play as she was whistled for two hands up while defending the point. Sumner took advantage of the foul situation and outscored Puyallup 4-1 over the final 5 minutes. But the Vikings already had goals from Lauren Griffin, Sam Evans, Boschee'and Boyer to withstand the Sumner scoring barrage and recorded win number nine on the season. The Vikings return to action on Thursday with a third trip to the Auburn pool to play Auburn at 5 pm. Puyallup will return home Friday to play their first home game in a month when it takes on league leading Enumclaw at 7:30 pm.

Puyallup tackles tough Auburn-Riverside

Puyallup was tested Thursday night and is relieved to have passed the test against Auburn-Riverside with a 15-7 win over the Ravens. In the closest contest of the year to date, the Vikings couldn't shake the pesky Ravens the entire first half. Riverside's smothering and agressive defense frustrated Puyallup and it showed as they could get the fast break started or get good hole sets. Katie Hayes scored a minute into the game and Puyallup would go three minutes before scoring again when Joanna Boschee' scored a sweep shot with 2:36 to play. Paige Boyer made it 3-0 a minute later, but Riverside came right back with a goal with 25 seconds left to play in the first. Things got even tighter in the second period as back to back goals by Riverside's Amy Cleveland got the Ravens to within one at 4-3 with four minutes left to play . Goals by Boschee' and Lauren Griffin gave Puyallup breathing room at 7-3, but Riverside scored a 5 meter penalty shot that put them back into the game at 7-4. In the second half Boschee' put the Vikings on her back and dominated the water for the first four minutes of the half. She hit a streaking Griffin on the second half sprint for a quick goal, then drilled two more goals herself to put Puyallup up 10-4. Boschee' would finish with a team high six goals. A double ejection that saw Riverside lose their best defender midway through the third period took the wind out of Riverside and it was smooth sailing for the Vikings after that. Bianca Jimenez, Griffin and Brenda Pogue all scored third quarter goals that pushed Puyallup's lead to 13-4. A couple of 5 meter penalty shots in the fourth for Riverside wasn't enough and Puyallup collected win number five. The Vikings get little time to celebrate as they play Emerald Ridge Friday in their third game in three days. Game time is 3:30.

Puyallup shuts out Emerald Ridge, 7-0

The Puyallup Vikings recorded their sixth win in a row with a 7-0 shut out of district rival, Emerald Ridge. Behind Alex Clark's strong play in goal, Puyallup played aggressive defense for the second straight game to win its third game in three days. Feeling the effects of playing three games in three days in three different pool, Puyallup appeared sluggish and were a little sloppy in the first half. Behind goals by Joanna Boschee' and Paige Boyer, the Vikings grinded out a 3-0 halftime lead. While the Viks weren't sharp offensively, they shone on the defensive side as Hope Mahnken and Katie Hayes teamed up to shut down ER's 2 meter play. Lauren Griffin stayed up with ER's speedy Brittany Bushnell to deny the Jaguars an outside threat. The defensive pressure also resulted in several shot clock violations on the Jaguars which Puyallup used in the second half to pull away. The Viking shut out was put to the test with 42 seconds left to play and Puyallup facing an Emerald Ridge power play. Boschee' got a hand on a shot from the top and Clark gobbled up the lose ball and found a streaking Boyer for the final score with 17 seconds left in the game. Puyallup is back in action on March 29 at Sumner against Bonney Lake. Game time is 3:15.

Vikings get defensive in win over Auburn

Puyallup made it four wins in a row as it defeated Auburn 22-8 last night at Puyallup. While the Vikings have been tearing off goals at a record clip all season--they lead the league in goals scored-- the focus against Auburn was to play aggressive defense. Alex Clark, Hope Mahnken and Katie Hayes stood tall defensively for the Viks as their stops and blocks lead to fast break after fast break which resulted in easy scores for Lauren Griffin and Paige Boyer. Griffin scored three goals in the first quarter and Boyer added two as Puyallup jumped out to a 8-1 first quarter lead. Boyer helped her own cause with incredible pressing defense on Auburn's point position which forced the Trojans to throw into the defensive maelstrom that was Mahnken, Hayes and Clark. A first-ever goal by Katarina Ost, two from Katie Hayes, and single goals from Sam Evans and Griffin pushed the Viking lead to 13-4 at halftime. In the second half, Katie Wells took over in the goal where Clark left off. She probably had the play of the night as she stopped a five meter penalty shot by Auburn's Kellie Wietstock. Puyallup's team defense turned in anther sterling play with 3:30 to play, when in a double down situation, stopped Auburn's power play with just four girls in the water. Shanna Josephson, with her first-ever goal, closed out the scoring and the Trojans with just 12 seconds to play. Next up for the Viks is Auburn-Riverside at Auburn on Thursday at 7:30 pm. It is the middle game of three in a row for Puyallup. The Vikings travel to Rogers on Friday afternoon to face Emerald Ridge in a pivotal league battle. Game time for ER is 3:30.

Vikings Swim over Sumner for second straight win

Puyallup jumped out to a 8-0 lead after one quarter of play and never looked back as the Vikings swam over Sumner 24-14, Friday night to record its second straight win of the season. The first quarter was the Joanna Boschee' show as she scored five of the 8 Viking goals, including 4 in a row in a span of two minutes. Paige Boyer added the first two Viking scores and Hope Mahnken tallied a goal as well. It wasn't just offense either as Alex Clark stood tall in the cage keeping the Spartans off the board for the first quarter and a half. She ended up just giving up three goals in her one half of play in the goalie spot. Katie Hayes was also strong on the defensive side knocking down several Sumner shots from the outside. She also stepped up and played tough D in the two meter spot after Manhken was ejected with her third personal foul late in the third quarter. In the third quarter, Puyallup displayed balanced scoring as Boyer racked up four goals, Mahnken added two more goals, Boschee' added another, and Bianca Jimenez knocked down a goal with 16 seconds left in the quarter. The scoring flurry pushed the Viking lead to 19-8 going into the fourth quarter. The final frame saw a lot of reserves see extensive action. Clark, out of the cage and into the field, took advantage of the time and scored three goals. Again it was the new players learning under fire as Sumner outscored Puyallup 6-5 in the fourth. Chelsey Coble, Pam Akiona and Shanna Josephson all played solid defense, and Katie Wells continued to improve in the goal. Next week will be a busy week as the Vikings play three games in a row beginning with Auburn at home followed by road games at Auburn-Riverside and Emerald Ridge.

Win with a Mountain View

Puyallup battled a scrappy Auburn-Mt. View team and its own inexperience to earn a 21-17 season opening victory last night at the Auburn pool. While the Vikings inexperience reared its head again and again, it was Puyallup's experience that got the Vikings off to a strong start last night. Joanna Boschee' racked up three quick goals as Puyallup jumped out to a 5-2 first quarter lead. Behind two more Boschee' goals and three from Paige Boyer, Puyallup surged out to an 11-2 lead midway through the second quarter. Defensively, the Viks were solid early as well. Hope Mahnken was tough at the two-meter and Paige Boyer was constantly pressing the Lions point into turnovers and bad passes. Alex Clark, fresh off a state basketball appearance, was solid in the cage getting several key blocks including a 5 meter penalty shot. Auburn Mt. View didn't go away, however, and it climbed back into the game late in the half with three straight goals to make it 13-5 Puyallup at the half. Katie Hayes got the second half scoring started and Bianca Jimenez and Clark also recorded third quarter scores as Puyallup led 17-7 with 2:49 left in the quarter. Puyallup's offense then bogged down and didn't score again until 12 seconds left when Pam Akiona scored her first-ever goal with a sweet, low corner, under the goalie's arm shot in the shallow end.The final frame was a matter of hang on time as brand new team members got their first taste of game action. The result was predictable as Auburn Mt. View turned errant passes into fastbreak opportunities and Puyallup went scoreless for the final 3:17 of the game. Up next for the Vikings is their first home game of the year this Friday against Sumner. Sumner also won its opener against Auburn. Game time is 7:30

Vikings gear up to defend water polo league title

With 10 players returning from last year's undefeated league champs, the Viks should be in good shape to contend for a repeat title in 2007. Despite losing 8 seasoned veterans from last year's squad, this year's edition appears to be an overall better swimming team, but will probably experience some growing pains as the new swimmers on the team learning the game of polo. Doing most of the teaching will be returning starters Joanna Boschee' and Paige Boyer. Also figuring into the mix will be co captains, Hope Mahnken and Katie Hayes, two of the team's top defensive players. The Vikings will also look to sophomore Lauren Griffin and her blazing speed to stretch defenses. Seniors Sam Evan and Brenda Pogue have also looked good in early season drills. Junior Alex Clark will takeover in the cage for Kelsey Hamilton, who enrolled at Rogers High School. She has just joined the team as a result of being involved with the basketball team's march to the 4A state tournament. Newcomers that have impressed so far include freshman Kat Ost, and juniors Marissa Fletcher and Chelsey Coble. Puyallup will look north and south for challenges for the league title from Enumclaw and Auburn Riverside and Rogers. Puyallup will open up league play Tuesday, March 13 with a road game against Auburn Mountainview at the Auburn pool. Game time is set for 7 pm. Puyallup's home opener is Friday, March 16 against Sumner. Game time is 7:30.

Summer League gets underway June 18

No time to rest on our laurels as summer league at Curtis High School starts June 18. We will be playing five games starting June 18 and ending July 23.
The cost of the league is $155,so I plan on dividing that between the players. My hope is we can get 10-15 players committed to playing, so we have an inexpensive chance to play polo during the summer. Remember to play you have to be registered with US Water Polo. To do this go to USA Water Polo.com and click on the "To Join" section. Make sure you sign up as a new member which costs $30 for three months. Also if it asks for a club name, register under Puget Sound Polo. This will also save us money. Games will be played on Sundays at Curtis High School on the following dates: June 18, 25; July 2, 9 and 23. This league will offer tough competition, but it will just make us that much better as we prepare to defend our league title next spring. My hope is all returning players will be able to participate. We will practice on those Tuesdays and Thursdays that the pool has Adult water polo from 7-8:30. Of course, two games will have been played before the Puyallup Pool reopens for the summer.

Vikings sting Hornets; play for third place

Puyallup will face Stadium for third place in the Puget Sound State Water Polo Tournament as a result of scratching out a 10-7 win over league rival, Enumclaw, on Saturday afternoon.
As was the case all season long, Puyallup used the scoring of Haley Carroll, Katie Kindle and Kim Akiona to put the Hornets away for the third time this season. Puyallup's defense, led by Hannah Fralick and goalie Kelsey Hamilton, also stood tall as Enumclaw managed just a one score in the first half. It was Bri Watts that got Puyallup on the board first with a goal just 49 seconds into the game. Carroll followed two minutes later with the first of her game high three goals. Carroll added another score in the second quarter to give Puyallup its 3-1 halftime advantage. The Vikings stretched their lead to 6-1 on goals from Carroll, Kindle and Joanna Boschee'. Enumclaw crawled back into the game with two back to back scores in the fourth quarter to make it 6-3, but Kim Akiona took over the scoring load for Puyallup ripping off two scores in 32 seconds to get Puyallup some breathing room at 8-3. The Vikings then rested their regulars in anticipation of playing Stadium for third/fourth place. The Viking reserves were tested defensively, but they held on thanks in part to a big goal from Emily Hager and a big defensive block from Alex Clark.