Diablo Valley College’s women’s water polo concluded their regular season Wednesday, Oct. 29 securing first place in the Big Eight Conference and solidifying an undefeated overall record.

The Vikings struggled to get things going early on Wednesday; a few turnovers and close scoring chances resulted in a 1-1 tie at the end of the first quarter.

In the second quarter, some clutch goals and strong defense allowed the Vikings to start pulling away.

Driver Hannah Dillon scored with just one minute left in the half. Dillon’s goal was followed by a huge stop from goaltender Shelby Salling and with seconds left in the half. Driver Megan Dietrich was able to score from far out and beat the buzzer.

DVC lead 7-2 at the end of the first half.

During the second half, the Vikings continued to dominate on both sides of the ball.

Sierra College battled in the fourth quarter, tacking on some late goals, but the goals would not be pivotal.

Driver Tara Thorsen believes the team’s hard work has paid off and will help them in the playoffs.

“I don’t think I have ever been on a team where we’ve worked so hard in practice,” Thorsen said. “It feels really good that it’s paid off.”

Driver Ruby Personius felt as though the team’s determination has propelled them through this perfect season.

“We’re not anymore special, I don’t think, than any other team,” Personius said. “We work really hard and we really want to win, that’s what has helped us.”

Coach John Roemer feels as though the season went better than he originally thought.

“I wasn’t shocked, but I’m pleasantly surprised,” Roemer said. “I anticipated a little bit more speed bumps along the way but thought we would be in the same position we are now.”

In his first year coaching the women’s team, Roemer not only led the Vikings to an undefeated season, but he expects them to go far into the playoffs.

He is not worried about winning the conference championship and said he is going to approach it as if it were any other game.

“We’ve played everybody in conference and that (Sierra College) is probably the strongest team we’ve seen,” Roemer said. “We should be at least six, seven or eight goals better than them.”

The Vikings will look to advance further into the playoffs on Friday, Nov. 7 and Saturday, Nov. 8 in the Big Eight Conference tournament at Delta College in Stockton.