Defense does it for Buchanan in D-I boys water polo repeat

Buchanan High boys water polo coach Dave Pickford said his Bears pride themselves on their defense.

And that side of the ball, led by senior goalie Anthony Tolbert, showed up big time in the second half Thursday night, shutting down four power plays and shutting out visiting Clovis North in the fourth period of an 8-6 victory in the Central Section Division 1 championship.

It was the second consecutive title for the top-seeded Bears (24-4) and ninth in school history.

“We look at it as a pride thing,” said Kaleb Archer, who scored a game-high four goals. “If every single person says, ‘I’m not gonna let that ball score,’ no balls go in and that’s what we did.”

Tolbert had six of his 10 saves in the second half when the Bears limited the Broncos to a single goal.

“We didn’t have the first half that we would have wanted to,” Tolbert said. “The great thing about our team is we really know how to fight back. We haven’t lost a close game this season and I think that really speaks to the battle and the heart in this entire team.

“The coaching staff really instilled that in us. We just have a great team.”

Buchanan trailed 5-4 at halftime, but tied it when Zack Keysaw fed Archer with 5:29 left in the third.

Gabe Putnam’s power-play goal with 3:46 left in the third period gave the Bears their first lead but one they would not relinquish.

“We’re a second-half-kind-of team,” said Archer, whose backhand made it 7-5 with 2:26 to go in the third period. “We knew if we could keep it close and play our game, it would work out for us.

“You mentioned the powerful shots, it was just what the team needed at the time. We’re all working as one unit and when we do that, we play well. We went out there and did it.”

David Hoffman made a penalty shot in the first half and another late in the third period to help the Broncos close within 7-6.

Archer assisted Putnam on a power-play goal that gave the Bears an 8-6 advantage with 5 minutes remaining and Tolbert and the defense sealed the victory.

Clovis North has probably had enough of Buchanan for one season.

The Broncos shared their pool with the Bears for the summer and most of the season, while Buchanan’s facility was undergoing work. And the Bears beat the Broncos twice, 12-5 and 10-3, en route to winning a third consecutive Tri-River Athletic Conference title.

Second-seeded Clovis North (24-7), which reached the D-III final in 2009 and won D-II championships from 2010-11, made their first appearance in the D-1 final since 2014.

Clovis North struck first with two goals by Evan Bell, who added a third later in the half.

This story was originally published November 9, 2017 at 9:10 PM with the headline "Defense does it for Buchanan in D-I boys water polo repeat."