Youth Water Polo: CMAC wins gold

The Costa Mesa Aquatics Club 10-and-under co-ed team, led by Head Coach Constance Brannick, won the gold medal in its division of the KAP7 tournament in Orange County after beating Rose Bowl club, 15-10, in the championship game on Sunday.

The CMAC 10U team avenged a 15-12 loss to Rose Bowl on Saturday. Mark Casey and Emerson Carrozza produced quick breakaways, and Landon Akerstrom led the team in scoring from the set position, the CMAC team won the gold medal.

The CMAC 12U team, led by Coach Mitchell Grandia, placed sixth after two wins and two losses in a strong field of 16 teams in the two-day tournament.

The CMAC 10U team, supported by Assistant Coach Jordan Briand, won its first game against Kahuna from Irvine, 18-13. Jordan De La Jara guarded the goal with many saved, while Everett Rowden and Wyatt Juelfs led in scoring. Lucas Ramirez and Liam McCarthy made a strong effort as attacking forwards.

Rachell Hemmila guarded the goal in CMAC’s second game, the loss to Rose Bowl. Reed Pantaleon, Cody Ho and Blake Douglas provided strong play.

The second day of the tournament started with the semifinals and a big win against LA Premier which had won its first-day games with double digits. An outstanding effort was made by Matthew Prasarnsuk who set up plays for his team to score in a close 9-7 win. Kira Anderson, Chloe Burnett and Dharma Andreas led a strong defense.

“We are very excited about the future for CMAC,” CMAC Director Jose De La Jara said. “A gold medal in the youngest division with players as young as 7 shows that Costa Mesa Water Polo has built a strong foundation of boys and girls players for many years to come.”

— Reader submission