Richard Fan

Junior left wing Chester Bunker looks for a pass to penetrate the Pioneers’ defense during the Oct. 24 game.

As senior set Nikhil Chadha smashed the ball into the cage in an early-game penalty shot, the home water polo bleachers, packed to the brim with supporters, erupted into cheering. With this goal, the Falcons took the lead for the rest of the game against the Cupertino Pioneers on Oct. 24 during their senior night. They won the game 7-5 behind Chadha’s five goals and senior goalie Armon Vuppala’s key blocks, bringing their league record to 3-11.

This victory contrasted with a 12-3 defeat the last time the Falcons faced the Pioneers on Sept. 10, which was before Chadha could play for the team.

“I played really well in the goal. I blocked every shot in the first half, and our team synergy was definitely on point,” Vuppala said. 

Despite their initial lead, the first and second quarter saw a back-and-forth battle for possession, during which senior right wing Kirby Fung took several shots on the cage; however, while his shots were accurate, none sunk in the back of the net. The second quarter also included two ejections — with senior left wing Agastya Vitaldevara reaching his second ejection — and sophomore left wing Brian Le getting a lucky counter, finishing with a strong shot into the back of the net to bring the Falcons to a 2-0 lead.

“I’d say this has been the best defense we have ever played, but one of the worst offenses we have played. We had little to no movement, so we relied only on ejections and our center [Chadha],” Shah said. 

The third quarter was significantly more tumultuous, starting off with a strong pass to Chadha in set, who found the space for a strong shot to bury the ball into goal. After receiving another ball in set, he cheekily lobbed the ball over the keeper once again, bringing the score to 4-0. 

The Pioneers then went on to accomplish a significant counter, with their No. 9 making it to the 2-meter line unchallenged. Despite Le’s efforts to delay the goal, the Pioneers still scored the penalty awarded to them for Le’s foul. 

The Falcons quickly responded with a buzzer beater from Chadha, who lobbed the ball from outside 5-meters, increasing the score to a dominant 5-1. With only 10 seconds left in the quarter, the other team retaliated with a counter, scoring their second goal. 

In the fourth quarter, Vuppala recalled Coach Michael Allegretti deciding to sub in their non-starters in light of their 5-2 lead. Allegretti hoped to give them playing time before league tournaments during the week of Oct. 28, where competition would be tougher and opportunities to play would decrease. 

After two ejections from the Pioneers in a row, Kirby monopolized on the 6-on-5 player advantage, bringing the score to 6-2. 

Chadha followed with another strong goal, but in the last minutes of the final quarter, the Pioneers managed to slot three goals in, with two back-to-back goals in the last minute. 

With their win, Vuppala looks toward and is optimistic about their chances in the league tournament: “I’m really excited for the League Tournament next week. If we can win the first game against Homestead, who we lost 9-8 to at their pool, it’s a lock,” he said. “We’re going for first [place].”