The Alameda and Encinal high school women’s water polo teams staged their own Island Bowl in the West Alameda County Conference (WACC) water polo tournament championship last Friday, Oct. 29. 

The matchup was too intense to end in regulation, so it was decided in overtime. The Alameda High School Hornets (17-4) outscored the Encinal High School Jets (17-8) 2-1 to win the championship 14-13. 

The Hornets struggled early. Bad passing and blocked shots plagued Alameda at the start, and it showed on the scoreboard. The Hornets trailed 3-1 at the end of the first quarter. However, the Hornets were able to tie the match 12-12 at the end of regulation. 
The win gives the Hornets their third straight WACC league title. The Hornets beat Piedmont 20-10 for the title last year and 19-11 in 2014.

The Hornets and Jets have now turned their attention to the North Coast Section (NCS) Div. II playoffs. The Hornets, the sixth seed, took on St. Patrick-St. Vincent of Vallejo in the first round, while Encinal, the seventh seed, faced Alhambra. Both games were played yesterday.

Men’s Water Polo
The Alameda men’s water polo team’s bid to repeat as WACC champions were crushed by Piedmont in the WACC semifinals 18-13 on Oct. 28. The Hornets (13-9) beat Lick-Wilmerding of San Francisco in the quarterfinals 19-4 on Oct. 27. The Hornets, the sixth seed, took on Newark Memorial in the first round of the NCS Div. II playoffs yesterday. The Jets (13-9-1) did not participate in the WACC tournament, but have qualified for the NCS Div. II playoffs. The Jets, the eighth seed, will take on Justin-Siena of Napa in the first round yesterday.