MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – New Head Coach Heather Moody takes her team on the road this weekend to play in the St. Francis Invitational hosted by St. Francis High School in Mountain View. The tournament features a 16-school field with play at both St. Francis and Sacred Heart Prep.

“My expectations are that they work on what we have been covering in practice,” said Moody. “We have been really focusing on defense and our press positioning, as well making sure we have pressure on the ball while having awareness of the need to help behind them. Offensively, we have been working on breaking that press and staying in the attack zone.”

Moody is in her first season after a decorated career with USA Water Polo that included her winning four Olympic medals as a player and a coach. The Troubadour team has seen the early benefits of working with a coach with her world-class background.

“I really like Heather and it is good change to have a woman coach in an all-girls community,” said senior Brinnley Barthels. “She has brought the team together a lot with her experience and I have seen a lot of improvement. I am excited to see how the season plays out.”

Moody inherits nine seniors on her first roster, including captains Barthels, goalie Sophie Rubino and utility Marissa Zanobini. The varsity roster also includes seven juniors and six sophomores.

“We all get along really well and hopefully that can translate into the water when we play together,” said junior Lauren Charter. “Our communication has got exponentially better since our first practice date.”

St. Francis opens against Saratoga at 3:30 p.m. Friday with the winner advancing to play the winner of the Clovis West/Castilleja matchup at 6:50 p.m. The losers play at 6:00 p.m. at St. Francis. Action continues on Saturday at St. Francis and Sacred Heart Prep.

“We are going to get a ton of information on where they are and what they do,” said Moody.  “Playing with lineups is something we can see how they play together and what that rotation will be. We are going to playing a lot of people but there is that competitive edge where we will be playing to win.”

Following the opening tournament, the team returns to host its first game against Monterey Trail at Jesuit High School on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 4:45 p.m. The Junior Varsity team will host Davis in the second game at 5:45 p.m.

“I like playing at home and we would love to get more people to come out,” said Barthels. “Seeing familiar faces in the crowd like teammates, peers, parents and brothers and sisters. It is great to have everyone cheering us on.”