Gaby Zifcak’s seven goals send Ocean View to second round

Ocean View got to enjoy the spoils of a dramatic turnaround, the Seahawks playing under the lights at home for the first time all season on Tuesday.

The Orange Coast League-champion Seahawks defeated Riverside JW North 8-6 in the opening round of the CIF Southern Section Division 6 girls’ water polo playoffs.

Junior Gaby Zifcak scored seven goals to lead Ocean View (13-9), which will travel to face Alhambra (6-5) at the Granada Park Pool at 4 p.m. on Friday.

“I’ve never played in CIF before, so it’s really exciting for me,” Zifcak said. “To know that we’re having a second CIF game because we won this one is even more exciting.”

Ocean View’s longest winning streak was four games during a mid-December stretch, ending with a win over traditional rival Westminster in a nonleague contest.

It would take a run of equal longevity to send the program to its fourth section championship game. The Seahawks made three consecutive CIF finals appearances from 2013 to 2015, but the program has never brought home a title.

A playoff run of any kind would be icing on the cake for a program that endured a 3-18 campaign a season ago.

Ocean View coach Jake Huynen lauded Zifcak for her leadership capabilities, saying, “That kind of drives this team … and kind of carries this team to wins.”

For the Seahawks to experience the extended success from earlier in the year, Huynen said it will take contributions from across the roster.

There were flashes of that, especially on the defensive end. Goalkeeper Anika Hurtig, a converted field player who took over in the cage this season, had five saves and two steals.

Two-meter defender Josefina Rodriguez was an imposing deterrent that made the opposition think twice about attempting to fight for position near the net.

Huynen noted that Rodriguez also “shines at” moving the ball down the court, which helps the goalie, who can’t pass the ball far. “Josie relieves that pressure from our goalie, and she gets the ball and she puts the ball down the court. I would almost say she’s like a quarterback for us. She leads the offense in that sense.”

Ocean View combined for eight steals, receiving two each from Fadia Omran and Zifcak, while Gretchen Reed and Rodriguez each had one.

Zifcak did all the scoring before halftime, with Serena Ruiz collecting three of her game-high four assists before the break. Omran scored on a looping shot on the first possession of the third quarter to stretch the lead to 6-1.

JW North (8-18) retaliated with three unanswered goals, but it was a prompt response from Zifcak on a 5-meter shot that snuck inside the right post that settled the Seahawks. The lead climbed to 7-4 with six minutes remaining, and it grew to 8-4 when Zifcak converted a stretch pass from Ruiz.

“I felt good about it just because I knew that it would help our girls after the shock of getting scored on,” Zifcak said of stopping the Huskies’ momentum. “They know that we can come back.”

Maci Miracle-Tilford had four goals, four steals and one assist to lead JW North. Rosalie Solorio also scored twice for the Huskies.