Fatima, St Joseph's Convent PoS bag water polo hat-tricks

The students of Fatima College and St Joseph's Convent Port of Spain (SJCPoS) displayed their dominance when the Republic Bank Aquatic Sports Association of TT (ASATT) National Secondary Schools Water Polo League concluded on the weekend, as both splashed to a hat-trick of titles. 

When the action wrapped up at the National Aquatic Centre in Balmain, Couva, on March 8, both schools had won the respective under-14, under-16, and open trophies. On the previous weekend, the Form One titles went to Bishop Anstey High School PoS (BAHS) and Diego Martin Central, respectively. BAHS beat Diego Central to the girls' Form One crown, but the Diego Martin boys put things right when a seven-goal showing from Andriel Williams powered them to a tight 9-8 victory over Queen's Royal College in the boys' Form One finale. 

The girls from SJCPoS made their intentions clear when they drubbed BAHS 15-2 in the under-14 final to clinch their first of three titles. Romaya Pierre and Drew Thomas scored four goals apiece to lead the SJCPoS riot.  

In the under-16 final against Holy Name Convent, SJCPoS used a breathtaking second-half performance to romp to a 22-12 victory after leading 9-7 at the halfway stage. Shauna Murphy was instrumental in SJCPoS's run to the under-16 title, leading with seven goals, while Alexis Avey, Eliana Lee, and Abella Mollenthiel all scored four goals each. Melanie Valdez Brown fought admirably for Holy Name with a team-high seven goals. 

In the girls' open final, SJCPoS had another battle with BAHS. On this occasion, BAHS were up for the fight, but just fell on the wrong side of a 6-5 scoreline. BAHS led 4-1 at the halftime break thanks to a Mya Dos Santos double, but her team was held scoreless in the third quarter as SJCPoS jumped out to a 5-4 lead. In the final quarter, Lee netted her second goal of the game to ensure SJCPoS hoisted their third trophy on the day. 

Holy Name Convent Port of Spain's Amilya Marshall (R) lines up a shot against St Joseph's Convent Port of Spain in the under-16 final of the National Secondary Schools Water Polo League at the National Aquatic Centre, Couva, on March 8. Photos courtesy Sorias Media 

Fatima got their title-hunt started on March 7 when they clobbered St Mary's College 19-5 in the under-14 final. Liam Rogers and Jude Galt scored six and five goals, respectively, to lead the boys from Mucurapo Road to their first title. Fatima's "B" team, meanwhile, registered a fourth-placed finish in the under-14 division after losing a tight third-place playoff. 

None shall pass: Fatima College "B" team player Gabriel Joseph (R) looks for a passing option against St Mary's College in their under-16 bronze-medal matchup in the National Secondary Schools Water Polo League. 

 

In both the under-16 and open finals, Fatima overpowered the QRC outfit to complete their hat-trick. The under-16 final was a much closer affair than the open finale, and Fatima actually trailed the Royalians 6-7 at halftime. By the end of the third quarter, QRC still had the upper hand, leading 10-9. In the final quarter, though, Fatima hit the accelerator as both Logan Calder and Giovanni Felician-Moses scored three goals in the period to help their school to a 17-13 comeback victory. Felician-Moses scored a game-high six goals, with both Luke Gibson and Aaron Villafana netting five goals in the losing effort for QRC. 

The open final was much more straightforward for Fatima, who opened up a big 9-2 lead at the end of the first quarter, en route to a 19-9 victory. Jeremiah Henriques-Brown matched the opponents' tally with an impressive nine-goal performance, with Liam Chin Lee chipping in with five goals. Villafana scored a double for QRC, while Javier Jordan led the Royalians with five goals. Their efforts weren't nearly enough to stop Fatima from cruising to their third title to end a dominant weekend in the pool. 

Jubilant Fatima College players dive in the pool after copping one of their three titles at the National Secondary Schools Water Polo League at the National Aquatic Centre, Couva, on March 8.