Team Ray takes two of three in the pool

Good ball control is key in wins over Kentridge and Sammamish.

gic goes, your chances of losing greatly diminish.

Team Ray found that out the hard way as they defeated the Kentridge Chargers last Wednesday at the King County Aquatic Center 20-11 and the Sammamish Totems 16-5 Sunday at the Ray Williamson Pool, but lost to the Newport Knights 17-10 on Friday at home.

In the games they won, the Spartans turned the ball over 10 and 12 times, respectively. Against Newport, they turned the ball over 23 times.

“We came out and spotted them a few points by turning the ball over, and they took advantage of it,” head coach Zoltan Tusnadi said. “We just came out flat.”

The Knights were aggressive from the opening, taking advantage of Ray’s lack of intensity as they raced out to a 5-2 lead after the first period.

It was 7-2 midway through the second period before Team Ray reeled off three straight goals from Tamas Torok, Jake Santelli and Caelen Ball to close the lead to two. But Newport put the biscuit in the basket two more times, including a one bouncer that got past goalie Cheyne Clark, to make it 9-5 at the half.

Torok and Austin Hallett scored for Team Ray to reduce the lead to two in the third period, but Newport reeled off four more goals to keep the Knights ahead for good, even with Torok scoring a hat trick in the fourth.

Tusnadi acknowledged the slow starts come and go for his team.

“It’s been on and off,” he said. “We’ve had one game where we’ve started from the get go.

“I think they get nervous. It takes a while for the jitters to get out. (But) they all know where the problems are, and we’ll address it at practice.”

In Sunday’s victory, both Swanson and Santelli went off, as they scored eight and six goals, respectively. Swanson also had five steals and an assist, while Santelli had seven steals and two assists.

Ritchie Moore contributed a goal and three assists, while Ball had a goal and an assist. Clark had nine saves.

Team Ray wraps up its homestand this Saturday when they face Roosevelt at 5:20 p.m.

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.