The varsity water polo team, led by head coach Erik Healy, currently holds a record of 8-3 with losses against Orange Lutheran, Sacred Heart and Harvard-Westlake. Last weekend the Cubs participated in the South Coast Tournament at Santa Margarita High School and Newport Harbor High School, placing ninth out of 72 teams.
The Cubs started off South Coast Tournament on Thursday, Sept. 22, defeating Esperanza, 20-10. Later that day, the Cubs lost to Agoura 6-8. On Friday, the Cubs played Santa Margarita High School and won, 16-8. Continuing into Saturday, the Cubs defeated Dana Hills, 17-11. Later that day, they ended the tournament by defeating El Toro, 7-3.
Speaking about the team’s performance at its recent tournament, Healy said, “We have started the season with three big tournaments. We wanted to start with a bunch of games to get some experience under our belt and to figure out what we are good at and what we need to improve on. Pretty soon, we get into non league and league games, which will obviously be huge for the rest of the season. It’s exciting watching this team grow.”
Coach Healy is very excited about how the team is playing right now and looks forward to the future. He said, “I am very happy with the way the team is playing. We have a bunch of selfless, inspired athletes who represent the program well. I feel like we are starting to hit our stride, and I believe this team will play its best water polo at the end of the season.”
After graduating a large portion of the team last year, this year’s team is very young. Senior utility Marko Vavic said, “This season we have a very young team with only a few returning varsity players. Being a senior this year means not only leading by example and keeping the team close, but also boosting the confidence of the newer players.”
On Wednesday, Oct. 5, the Cubs will face a rematch against Orange Lutheran at the USC Aquatic Center, a rematch after losing to them in the Santa Barbara Tournament. The Cubs will then face rival Harvard-Westlake on Monday, Oct. 19, also at the USC Aquatic Center.