Spring break is wrapped up as Waubonsie Valley welcomes Neuqua Valley to resume conference play. These two teams faced off in the Fenwick tournament, where the Warriors grinded out an 8-7 win. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
Yousseff El Touny and Declan Puacz exchange goals
The Warriors begin their attack as Youssef El Touny fights off three defenders and scores the game’s first goal not even a minute into the action.
2-1 Warriors as they continue to work around the goal area until El Touny targets the bottom left corner for his second score of the contest.
Declan Puacz for Neuqua takes note of El Touny and scores right in front of the goalie. The Cats trail 4-2 after one.
Neuqua continues to feed Puacz in the second quarter. Milan O’Connor finds him and hits the top shelf to tie the game at 4.
Both teams trade a couple more goals, but Ben Meier breaks a 6-6 tie with an aggressive shot that goes in for the Warriors.
Ben Meier goes on a tear to open the Warrior lead
Meier opens up a streak of three straight goals in the quarter. The third one finds the net with a beautiful skip to extend the Waubonsie lead to 9-6.
The Wildcats get a much-needed spark before the break. This time it’s Tony Newton with a laser as Neuqua trails 9-7 at halftime.
Coming out of the break, the Warriors waste no time. Daniel Niv shows authority on this skipper to make it a three-goal lead once again for the Green and Gold.
As for Neuqua Valley, it’s back to work with Puacz, this time assisting Mario Valent who hits the back of the net for the goal.
The seesaw battle continues as Arseni Branavitski from Waubonsie gets a quick one to go for the goal to keep the Wildcats at arms length.
13-9 Warriors in the fourth quarter, but don’t count out Neuqua just yet because Alex Malone shoots and scores through a tight window.
Then the Wildcats adjust on defense with Puacz grabbing the lose ball, and throws in one of his ten goals in the game. This one pulls Neuqua back within a 13-11 margin.
Waubonsie Valley boys water polo secures conference win
However, the Warriors have a response to every Neuqua punch. Ben Meier strikes in six goals on the night as Waubonsie Valley wins in a shootout 17-13 over Neuqua Valley.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.