The Mercer Island girls water polo team earned back-to-back wins in dominant fashion last week. The Islanders defeated Shorewood 13-4 on Wednesday before beating Inglemoor 11-3 Friday afternoon at Mary Wayte Pool.
Heather Robinson led Mercer Island in scoring for both contests, recording a hat trick in each game. Sophie Chang, Taylor Winnie, Grace Thomas and Leann Tse each scored twice Wednesday against Shorewood. Annie Ritcey and Alison Rorem both scored two goals Friday against Inglemoor.
Mercer Island was fourth in the division standings heading into Monday’s contest against Shorecrest, a game that wrapped up after the Reporter deadline.
“We started off the season really, really strong and my expectations were blown away right from the get-go,” Mercer Island coach Emily Carr said. “The girls just came out amazing but then we kind of hit a lull around spring break. We learned a lot from it, which is what we can take away. From there on out, we’ve continued to get better.”
Carr credited veteran players like Robinson, Mooie Phillips, Davis Simmons and Jacqui Li for stepping up and setting the tone for their teammates in the pool.
“All those girls who are returning just keep getting better,” Carr said. “Also, the biggest surprises have come from a lot of the new girls who’ve never played before. Their improvement has been astronomical. They’ve been incredible and developed as athletes and as water polo players.”
After Mercer Island’s win over Inglemoor on Friday, Carr said the Islanders still had yet to set team goals for the rest of the season, though each player had established their own individual objectives.
“I want to make sure that we’re able to take it one step at a time. Obviously, we’re excited to play in the tournament but the time for getting into the logistics of it will come after we finish our game on Monday,” Carr said. “From there on, we’ll kind of evaluate our standing and focus more on the tournament as we got about.
“As long as we just stay positive and optimistic, the girls are unstoppable.”
Mercer Island begins regional tournament competition May 20 and 21 at Curtis High School.
