Coach Chapman had warned the boys what was coming. Hanford would make them work through contact, and getting ahead on the scoreboard wouldn’t mean an easy evening in the pool.

Thursday’s game at Mt. Whitney followed that script. The Pioneers surrendered the opening goal, found their footing, and built a lead they never gave back, beating Hanford 13–5 to remain unbeaten in league play.

A night earlier against Strathmore, Whitney had struggled to sustain its better stretches. Against Hanford, the boys looked more alert and ready for the assignment. They needed a few minutes to settle in, but senior Eli McLennan helped make sure the early deficit didn’t last.

Eli scored Whitney’s first three goals. He tied the game on a five-meter penalty, put the Pioneers ahead with his next finish, then struck again on a man-up opportunity. Given room to unload, his arm was a difficult problem for Hanford to solve.

Sophomore Micah O’Dell added another goal with 15 seconds left in the opening quarter. Hanford’s early 1–0 advantage had become a 4–1 Whitney lead.

The attention on Eli grew more physical as the game went on. Whitney still had somewhere else to go with the ball. Working at two meters, Micah gave his teammates a target near the cage and scored once in every quarter. He also drew three exclusions, creating opportunities that extended beyond his own four goals.

Eli matched him with four, but some of Whitney’s most valuable work came from a player who scored only once.

Junior Jamen Radmacher earned Player of the Game honors by staying involved in nearly every part of the game. When his shots weren’t falling, he found other ways to help: winning possession, setting up teammates, and drawing defenders into fouls. He finished with three steals, two assists and a field block, along with two sprint wins, two exclusions drawn and a five-meter penalty drawn.

It was the kind of night when looking only at the goals column would miss much of what Jamen contributed.

Whitney led 6–2 at halftime and pulled farther away in the third. Senior Ruben Ramirez and Alex DeBock each scored before Eli and Micah added man-up goals, sending the Pioneers into the final quarter ahead 10–3.

Back in the cage after feeling ill against Strathmore, senior Casey Sherbrook was feeling better and finished with seven saves. Whitney had established control early enough that the evening never hinged on one desperate stop. Casey and the defense helped keep it that way.

Hanford continued to make the game physically demanding, just as Chapman had anticipated. The Pioneers nevertheless found chances to turn defense into offense late.

Freshman Zane Piper finished two counterattacks in the closing 1:09, scoring just 20 seconds apart to complete Whitney’s total. His three assists had already helped other shooters get involved; the late finishes put his own speed into the scoring.

Six Pioneers scored in the win. Eli supplied the early breakthrough, Micah kept producing near the cage, and Jamen’s work across the pool helped Whitney maintain its advantage. After an uneven outing the night before, the boys had answered with a more attentive performance against an opponent that demanded it.

Whitney improved to 15–7 overall and 6–0 in league play.