The boys water polo team started their season and hopes to build on last year’s success.
Last year, Aragon’s team (record) qualified for the Central Coast Section (CCS) Championships for the first time in 14 years.
“I think we exceeded all expectations,” said senior Ethan Xie. “We came in with a lot of juniors and a lot of us didn’t have a lot of experience playing the sport. But …we only lost four games and we ended up placing third overall in the season, which allowed us to have a playing game for CCS.”
This year’s team is mostly composed of seniors who have been playing together for the last 4 years.
“[Last year,] we only had a couple of seniors, which is normally seen as a disadvantage,” said senior Luke Childress. “We have maybe 15 seniors now…[and] we’re always trying to get more people to join. Our skills just keep developing at an exponential rate, and we’ve all really been a close knit group for four years now.”
Last year, the team’s chemistry and ability to communicate with one another gave them an advantage in the pool, allowing them to make quick decisions.
“It’s really a team sport and everyone is important,” said senior AJ Simenc. “There’s no one who just sits there and does nothing. You’re always moving…getting open, and running plays. It’s really important to have your teammates’ back and work together.”
“We exceeded all expectations”
The team practices together daily, with morning practices twice a week. They begin with swimming laps and conditioning and then do drills to work on the team-based aspects of the sport, such as passing. Practice may conclude with a scrimmage to give players a chance to apply their skills in the fast-paced environment of a competitive game.
This year, the team hopes to qualify to CCS again. Along the way, they face challenges from Menlo-Atherton and Woodside, who have placed first in the league in recent years.
“Both teams that we lost to last year were [Menlo-Atherton] and Woodside,” Xie said. “They lost a lot of their seniors, which [was] a main reason [they were] really good. So I hope we can beat them this year and place first.”
“It’s really important to have your teammates’ back and work together”
Last year, the team struggled with a slow start to games, falling behind by a few goals in the first half and having to come back in the second half.
“This year, we’re looking to get out of the gate stronger and take a lead and hold the lead rather than having to come from behind,” Childress said. “Waterpolo is a very physical sport, so it takes time to read the opponent’s rate, how they play, and read how physical they’re going to be. So [this year], it’s more of taking initiative and playing aggressive[ly].”
The team’s next scrimmage is against Lick-Wilmerding on Sept. 2 at 6 p.m.
