Mar Vista claims first-ever boys CIF water polo championship

It’s been raining throughout the week but being wet is what it’s all about in water polo.

Mar Vista High School’s players know all about that.

The Mariners didn’t let last Saturday’s atmospheric river downpour daunt them after securing the program’s first-ever San Diego Section divisional boys championship by defeating third-seeded Sage Creek, 12-5, to wrap up this year’s Division III bracket at the Coggin Family Aquatic Complex at La Jolla High School.

Mar Vista, the No. 4 seed in the bracket, improved its season record to 18-12 in preparation for the Southern California regional championship playoffs.

The CIF boys championship banner is the first for the Imperial Beach school in three tries following runner-up finishes in both 2014 (10-5 loss to x) and 2018 (14-6 loss to Steele Canyon).

Senior Tanner Kavanagh racked up seven goals and four steals in the division championship game while sophomore Jack Jaggers collected six points on one goal and five assists. Seniors Zyden Reiff and Nicholas Perez each scored two goals.

Junior Jake Leslie stopped 10 of 15 shots to guide his team to the win.

“Tanner has been playing some powerful polo,” Mariner coach Chad Kavanagh said. “The key to our success has been the rest of the team really stepping up their water polo IQ, our defensive strength, and multiple players being offensive threats.

“We have really grown and developed as a team, and when we play as a team, we have been unstoppable. The team has been really fun to coach.”

The Mariners wrapped up league play with a 19-2 win over Bonita Vista on Oct. 30 as Kavanagh collected six goals, three assists and six steals. Perez was next up with four goals, three assists and six steals.

Mar Vista opened the section playoffs with a first-round bye before engaging fifth-seeded Santa Fe Christian in the quarterfinals on Nov. 7. The Mariners won 13-6 behind nine goals, four assists and 12 steals from Kavanagh.

Mar Vista defeated top-seeded Pacific Ridge, 13-10, in the semifinals as Kavanagh sank the Firebirds with six goals.

Sage Creek eliminated seventh-seeded Mater Dei Catholic, 13-7, in the semifinals after the Crusaders squeezed past No. 2 Olympian (16-7) by a score of 6-5 in the quarterfinals. The Crusaders faced off the playoffs with an equally tight 7-6 win over 10^th-seeded Fallbrook.

A total of five Metro Conference teams qualified for the Division III playoffs. Sweetwater lost to Mira Mesa, 16-9, in a play-in game Nov. 3 to secure the No. 12 seed.

Otay Ranch entered the fray as the No. 9 seed and upset eighth-seeded Canyon Hills (9-10) by a score of 9-5 in the opening round before exiting the tournament with a 9-7 setback to top-seeded Pacific Ridge (7-7).

Mar Vista placed runner-up to Eastlake in year’s Metro-Mesa League standings. The Titans (19-9) received the No. 4 seed in the Division I bracket and advanced as far as the semifinals with an 11-7 quarterfinal victory against No. 5 Coronado (15-11) before ending the season with a 17-11 setback to No. 1 Canyon Crest Academy (21-8).

Junior Alejandro Tsubaki led the Titans with five goals, two assists and two steals in the win over Coronado while sophomore Keagan Hill made 14 saves.

Olympian won the Metro-South Bay League title with a 6-0 league record. Three teams from the league advanced to the playoffs. Mater Dei Catholic finished 4-2 in league play while Hilltop met Rancho Bernardo in a play-in game, dropping a 12-10 decision.

Senior Brian Manuguid keyed Olympian with 109 points on 90 goals and 19 assists in 22 games played. Senior Alex Park was next on the scoring sheet with 82 points on 48 goals and 34 assists. Manuguid was the team steals leader with 63, followed by Park with 61.

Junior Michael Jorgensen piled up 322 goalie saves, a 13-7 record with one shutout, and 26 assists.

Next level
Mar Vista received the No. 3 seed in the Division III regional playoffs. The Mariners defeated sixth-seeded Los Angeles Eagle Rock (10-6) by a score of 14-8 in Tuesday’s opening round before ending their season with a 16-14 loss to second-seeded Covina Charter Oak (18-11) in Thursday’s semifinals.

Charter Oak will play top-seeded Temecula Valley (16-11) in Saturday’s regional final.

Section Open Division runner-up Cathedral Catholic (25-5) as the No. 3 seed in the Division I regionals will meet top-seeded Newport Harbor (30-1) in Saturday’s championship game while No. 1Bishop’s (17-15) will engage No. 2 Santana (27-4) in an all-San Diego Section matchup in the Division II title contest.

Tanner Kavanagh led the Mariners with nine goals and four steals in the win over Eagle Rock while Jagger contributed one goal and three assists for four points. Junior Cooper Olson collected three points on two goals and one assist while Reiff scored two goals.

Leslie stopped 11 of 19 shots while dishing out three assists.

Kavanagh once again led his team in the pool with nine goals and four steals in what proved to be the season finale against Charter Oak while Jaggers added one goal and three assists for four points and tacked on five steals. Perez and Reiff each scored two goals while sophomore Jarrett Ames had two assists and two steals. Leslie recorded 12 saves and three steals.

Tanner Kavanagh finished the 2025 season with 226 points (178 goals, 48 assists with136 steals) in 32 games played.

Perez was next up with 86 points (64 goals, 22 assists), followed by Reiff with 85 points (69 goals, 16 assists) and Jaggers with 77 points (14 goals, 63 assists). Leslie logged 320 saves with a 17-13 record.

The Mariners finished 19-13.

San Diego Section Boys Water Polo Playoff Champions

Open Division: (2) La Jolla 13, (1) Cathedral Catholic 12

Division I: (2) Torrey Pines 9, (1) Canyon Crest Academy 8

Division II: (1) Oceanside 7, (2) Grossmont 3

Division III: (4) Mar Vista 12, (3) Sage Creek 5

Metro-Mesa League Standings
Eastlake 6-0 in league
Mar Vista 4-2 in league