Girls’ water polo: Murrieta Valley stakes another claim at No. 1

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The top three teams in Southern Section Division V girls’ water polo are members of the Southwestern League, so it should be easy to sort things out come playoff time.

Murrieta Valley took another step toward securing the top seed, defeating visiting Chaparral, 12-5, on Thursday.

Wendy Nicklaus scored three more goals against Chaparral, but what I’d really like to know is if she’s related to Jack because, you know, Murrieta is also home to some pretty good golfers and the Golden Bear has a signature course out that way.

Anyway, back to water polo. The Nighthawks (17-2, 3-0) came into their game against Chaparral ranked No. 1 in the division and now have a one-game lead over second-ranked Chaparral and third-ranked Temescal Canyon. Murrieta Valley and Chaparral have yet to play each other, however.

Murrieta Valley also won the Five Counties tournament in its pool last weekend, so I’d say the Nighthawks are rolling like a downhill putt.

--Dan Arritt