Hail Mary goal lifts the Barlow boys to an 11-10 win over Reynolds

It was a big five seconds for Barlow senior Brandon Lowder.

Deadlocked 10-10 with only a few ticks on the clock, Tuesday’s water polo match appeared destined for overtime. But Reynolds connected on a long pass that put the ball into the hands of Niki Gaither in the 2-meter spot — he rose out of the water dead-center in front of the Barlow goal.

But the ball would never leave his hand.

Lowder left his assignment on the edge of the pool and bumped Gaither just enough to stall the shot.

A whistle blew. Barlow was awarded possession.

“I saw there was three seconds left, so I threw up a prayer just hoping it would hit a bar and go in,” Lowder said. “The next thing I heard was everyone yelling, and I saw the ref put up my number at the scorer’s table.”

Lowder’s shot carried the distance of the pool, but instead of hitting part of the goal frame, the ball smacked into the Reynolds goalie and slowly spun past him into the bottom corner as the horn sounded.

“It’s always surprising when those kind of shots go in, but that’s why you have to take those chances when there’s only a couple seconds left,” Barlow coach Angie Schuerman said.

The desperation goal gave Barlow an 11-10 win.

The Barlow girls scored three goals in the final minutes of the third period to pull away for a 12-4 win in Tuesday’s opening match. Jordan Scheuermann had a team-high four goals for the Bruins, including a breakaway score that sparked the team’s clinching spurt.

The Barlow girls remain unbeaten in the Mount Hood Conference.

Look for extended coverage of both matches in the Friday, Oct. 12, edition of The Outlook.

View a photo gallery of tonight’s matches at …

http://daveball.exposuremanager.com/g/oct9_rey-bar_water_polo