McBride, Naperville North shut down York

Tina McBride had a season girls water polo opener to remember on Tuesday.

The Naperville North senior goalie did not give up a goal in the first 24 minutes in helping the Huskies to a 10-2 victory over host York in Elmhurst.

McBride, who made 10 saves, might have had a shutout if the Huskies hadn't cleared their bench in the fourth quarter.

York senior Maria Rantis finally halted the shutout bid with 3:45 remaining in the fourth quarter after Naperville North had a 9-0 lead.

"Obviously our goaltender, Tina McBride, played very well," Naperville North junior Isabelle Rocco said. "We were all very excited for her.

"If we didn't have Tina as strong as she is, we'd have to get so much better at defense. We're trying, obviously, but we owe a lot to her."

The Dukes had the first shot of the game and it was one of the few that got past McBride. But the drive from Amalia Siavelis hit the crossbar and the Huskies retaliated by scoring four goals in the first quarter.

Rocco had 2 of the goals, including the icebreaker 1:06 into the game, and finished with a game-high 3 goals. Taylor Wessel added 2 goals for the Huskies, while Megan Phillips, Ali Horn, Savanah Swanson, Sarah Maicke and Olivia Tsao each had 1.

"It was a good way to start out," said Naperville North coach Andy McWhirter. "We're still rusty.

"It's kind of a new mix so it's getting that rhythm together so we know those quiet cues. We can certainly yell it out, but we've got to start getting those quiet cues on how to pass and who to pass to at which times."

Even so, the Huskies did a good job of controlling possession. They outshot the Dukes 22-13, though all of York's shots were on target save for the Siavelis attempt that drew iron.

"(McBride) played a great game," York coach Mark Guiliani said. "We had right from the get-go three scoring opportunities in the first quarter that were just absolutely stuffed by her, and so hats off to her.

"The biggest part of our offense was just continuing to press and put shots on goal. We didn't do enough of that, but when she did, she made big saves."

McBride is a returning starter, but McWhirter said she has transformed herself.

"She has turned into an aggressive goalie, as opposed to just being in the net," McWhirter said. "She anticipates, she gets out there and is able to steal the ball or push it away. There were some times where she took that ball away."

McBride's counterpart, York senior Sarah Lewand, also had a big game, stopping 11 shots and showing the Huskies they still have ample room for improvement.

"We pulled some girls up from JV so putting them in and getting them used to it, I think this was a good game to introduce them to the varsity level," Rocco said. "As for the first line, I think we just need to refine some things with communication. Everyone did a really good job."