Troy standout water polo player Josh Stedman suffered a broken wrist at the Riverside Invitational on Thursday, Warriors coach Justin Link said in an e-mail this morning.

Link said the talented scorer will be out an "undisclosed" time. The injury occurred late in Troy's game against Riverside Poly and was an "accident" Link said.

Stay tuned for more info but make no mistake, this is a major blow for the Freeway League favorites who also are contenders in Division V.

TROY (27-5) VS. LOS OSOS (27-5)

Site, time: William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center (adjacent to Irvine High), noon

Prediction: Josh Stedman draws plenty of attention from Los Osos but actually is slowed down. But the Warriors still capture their first title because of their depth and defense.

SATURDAY

DIVISION V FINAL

TROY (27-5) VS. LOS OSOS (27-5)

Site, time: William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center (adjacent to Irvine High, noon

Outlook: Both teams are making their first appearance in a section final.

Los Osos, of Rancho Cucamonga, has been the top-ranked team in the division all season. The Grizzlies also were the preseason No. 1 in the division last season but fell to Yucaipa in the quarterfinals.

Los Osos starts only two seniors but has plenty of experience. All six of its starting field players are club players with the successful CHAWP program. Senior utility Paddy Kelleher leads Los Osos with 121 goals. 
Senior Mike Wong is a key center defender.

Los Osos co-coach Dave Merryman said finding “an answer for Josh (Stedman)” will be his team’s primary focus. The junior leads Orange County with 165 goals, including 17 in the playoffs. But Troy’s offense also features two productive senior scorers in lefty Keegan Condon (97 goals) and Riley Green (57).

Both teams’ junior goalies have had big seasons. Troy’s Clark Barry leads the county with 414 saves while Los Osos’ Tyler Abbott has 323.

DIVISION V SEMIFINALS

TROY (26-5) VS. PALM DESERT (21-9)

SITE, TIME: La Quinta High, 3:15 p.m.

PREDICTION: The offensive trio of Josh Stedman, Keegan Condon and the surging Riley Green will be too much for Palm Desert. The Warriors reach their first section final.

Division V second round

Whittier (12-7) vs. Troy (24-5) at El Dorado, 3:15 p.m.

Prediction: The Warriors are seeded third but we'll learn a lot more about them with how they handle this tricky second round match. Whittier is a name program in the Southern Section and usually plays a decent schedule. Third in the Del Rio Lg, Whittier handled a second-place team in Charter Oak, 11-5, on the road in the first round Tuesday. But fear not, Troy Faithful. The Warriors own a 10-3 victory against Whittier already this season and went 1-1 against Del Rio champ La Serna. Troy has the county's leading scorer in Josh Stedman and leader in saves in Clark Barry.  The Warriors have more than enough to reach the quarterfinals for the first time.