The West Valley women's water polo traveled to southern California last weekend for a pair of top-tier tournaments and emerged with a 3-1 record against four of the top teams in the south. The top-ranked Vikings (17-1) dropped their first game since Oct. 30 2021 - a 24-game unbeaten streak - Saturday afternoon in a hard-fought 9-6 loss to #4 Orange Coast (16-2). Prior to that, WVC roared through a trio of games, outscoring opponents 52-12.

The Vikings opened the weekend at Cerritos College against the host Falcons (6-11). Kianna Melvin finished with a game-high six goals to pace the 21-3 win. Johanna Scheer had four goals and three steals, while Grace Smith improved to 8-0 with the win in goal. Melvin, it turned out, was just warming up.

The Vikings jumped out to a 12-2 halftime lead over the Comets (9-5) thanks to six goals from Melvin. She would add three more for a season-high nine to go along with seven steals. Smith stopped 12 Comet shots to grab the win in the cage.

Saturday's docket at Long Beach City College pitted West Valley against two of the south's best in Long Beach (12-7) and Orange Coast (16-2). The Vikings coasted past Long Beach 13-6 behind Scheer's five goals and four steals and Melvin's hat trick. Smith had 15 saves and improved to 10-0.

The Vikings and the Pirates waged an epic battle in WVC's tournament finale. The teams battled to a 3-3 tie at the half, but three straight Pirate scores to close out the third quarter proved to be insurmountable for the Vikings, who missed a collective 26 shots. Melvin paced the stat sheet with three goals, while Smith stopped 12 shots.