The Santiago pool deck was buzzing with energy on Tuesday, January 28th, as the host location of the highly anticipated Big VIII Carousel finals. Fans filled the stands, representing every team in the league and coaches and players from across the Inland Empire, all eager to witness an intense battle for the league championship. In a tight, back-and-forth showdown, the Sharks defeated their crosstown rivals, Centennial, in a hard-fought 9-8 victory. The game was a rollercoaster of emotions, featuring six lead changes, with neither team managing to pull ahead by more than a single goal.
The Sharks entered the game intensely, drawing several ejections off the aggressive Centennial defense in their first possessions. Grace Nassar (12) scored the match’s first goal, giving Santiago confidence early in the game. The game remained highly competitive throughout the half, but the Sharks trailed by a goal late in the second quarter. Riley Romero (10) scored to cut the deficit, and Nassar made her next shot to regain the lead. Centennial scored one last goal as time expired, making the game a 5-5 tie at halftime.
Santiago remained composed and confident heading into the third quarter, with several Centennial starters already in foul trouble due to the Sharks’ constant movement on offense. The third quarter featured stellar defense from both teams, limiting their opponents to two goals apiece. Going into the fourth quarter, the Sharks were told to stick to their game plan of continuously driving and taking smart shots on offense while remaining cautious on defense, not allowing Centennial to score any easy goals.
Midway through the 4th quarter, Hayley Jane Pence (10) scored her 4th goal, giving Santiago an 8-7 lead. Centennial tied the game 8-8 on a penalty shot late in the 4th quarter. The Sharks called a timeout with under a minute left in the game to plan their next offensive possession. Assistant coach Chantz Gladden drew up a play that Santiago used the previous weekend in a tournament. In that game, Pence drew a foul and scored a goal with seconds remaining to win the championship game against Buena.
This time, Pence had the ball up top again and looked ready to shoot but instead dropped a pass to Savannah Perez (11), who was posted up in the 2-meter position. Perez fired the shot under the arm of Centennial’s goalie, giving the Sharks a one-goal lead with 22 seconds remaining in the game. “Before I scored, I was just hoping someone else was open because that’s what our game plan would’ve come down to in certain circumstances,” Perez recalled, “But when I got set the ball, I was just thinking about how I need this to go in for my family, the girls in the water with me. After I saw it go in I was really overwhelmed with joy and I honestly couldn’t even tell you how I reacted because it just feels like a fever dream.”
With their last possession and a chance to take the game into overtime, Centennial put the ball in the hands of their goalie to take an open shot. The Sharks’ defense blocked the shot before it had a chance to reach the cage and protected the ball until time expired. The pool deck erupted with cheering, and the team dragged Head Coach Kenny Clements into the water to celebrate. “The Sharks are back!” Clements exclaimed.
Some girls had conflicting emotions following the win, being close friends with club teammates on the Centennial team. “It was honestly really bittersweet,” said Pence. “It has been something I’ve wanted for so long, and it still doesn’t feel real. But knowing my friends are upset makes it hard to be happy. Overall, it was an amazing feeling, and I felt so accomplished since it’s something we worked so hard for and a goal of mine since I came into high school.” Pence’s intense pre-game rituals got her into the right mindset for the game, and she will continue carrying them into the CIF playoffs. “I plan on building my victory Lego set and hopefully have a lot of Starbucks. I’ll probably get a massage and train hard. My whole goal is to feel good going into it, so as long as I’m happy, it’s gonna be fun.”
The team was prepared for the championship’s competitiveness and recognized the importance of their team chemistry from the start. “The team was already super duper good about being supportive during games,” Perez shared, “But going into a game that we knew would be really hard, we all took the extra step and started being super positive and giving more positive talk than negative in the water. We also all got in the same mindset which I think really helped.”
The impressive victory capped off a stellar season for the Sharks, who now hold an overall record of 22-5 and a 7-1 league record. Their success throughout the regular season earned them the number two ranking in Division 2 of the CIF Southern Section. With a bye in the first round of the CIF playoffs, the Sharks will look to carry this positive momentum into their postseason run.
