Polo and XC Look to Repeat as Champs

In the midst of a busy time for athletes looking to get back into shape, build up teamwork and prepare for their first games, two teams are hoping to do more than just have a great season. As the 2012 New England champions, boys’ varsity water polo and boys’ varsity cross country each have a different perspective on this season, with the pressure to defend last year’s titles. Boys’ Water PoloBoys’ water polo, dubbed Bear Polo by many, had a successful 2012 season leading up to Interschols playoffs, hosted by Exeter. After both brutal wins, such as the sweeping 23-7 victory against St. John’s Prep, and tight matches, such as the 11-10 win in overtime against Choate Rosemary Hall, Big Red was left with a 14-5 season record and number-one seeding at Interschols.Exeter played number-four seed Brunswick first, whom they had lost to during their only match-up back in September. Exeter, however, asserted their quick offense and flawless defense in the game to claim a 6-2 win. In the NEPSAC Championship game against Choate, Big Red was able to pull off another lopsided win and clinch the Championship with an 11-4 victory.Although “reigning champions” might sound good to the ears, many Bear Polo athletes recognize the pressure this year as defending NEPSAC champions. “There’s a huge red target on the back of our heads. As of last year,we are the guys to beat. Everyone is going to be looking to take us down this season,” lower Will Belmont said.Upper Brooks Saltonstall agreed with Belmont, stressing the importance of pushing the team’s limits in training and game play. “There is a lot of pressure on the team for sure; we lost most of our starters, so that puts a lot of strain on guys coming up from JV. A lot of people are going to need to step up this year if we want to be a competitive team,” he said.Saltonstall continued, “The fact that we are New England champions only pressures me to train harder and play as well as I can. It should be a very interesting season now that we have a target on our backs.”After last year’s strong leadership of Kurt Pianka ’13, John Moon ’13 and Max Drach ’13, a new set of co-captains composed of seniors Nick duPont, JB Baker and Joe Shepley will seek to lead the team both in and out of the pool.According to Saltonstall, the co-captains started stepping into their roles during spring term of the past school year, holding unofficial Sunday practices.DuPont believed that the leadership of the past captains was critical to the team’s success, and eventual championship and expressed the importance of his responsibilities. “JB, Joe and I all need to lead by example in the pool, and get the rest of the team to step up their intensity, not by having us yell at them, but by going hard ourselves,” he said.“My other main responsibility as a captain is making sure the team meshes well,” duPont continued. “If we don’t do that, then no matter how intense our practices are or how good our individual skills are, then we will not be a team. We can’t win a championship without being a team.”While there are many foreseeable challenges to the season, Belmont believes that the team has the potential to repeat last year’s successes. “Since most of our starters graduated last year, we’re losing a lot of great players,” he said. “What we also have is a ton of potential though. It’s cliché but if everyone puts in the work and effort to contribute to the team as best they can this season, I think we will have a good run at the championship title.”DuPont agreed. “The returning varsity players, and even a lot of the JV players because of how close the programs are, now know what it feels like to be champions. And we want it again. We want it bad.” Boys’ Cross CountryBoys’ cross country was yet another success story of the fall 2012 season. Going into last year as the defending New England champions, the team looked to continue their tradition of excellence in fitness and speed of individual runners and in team spirit.In the regular season, Exeter displayed its strength as the defending champions. Coming out of their first meet on September 15, the Choate Rosemary Hall Invitational, as first place winners, the team rode the momentum for the rest of the season.By the time Interschols rolled around in November, the team had amassed an astounding undefeated record. With a 5-0 run in dual meets featuring commanding victories and a first place finish both at the Choate Rosemary Hall and Northfield Mount Hermon Invitational meets, Big Red was more than ready to become the New England Champions for the second straight year.Although the pressure that defending champions carry can sometimes take a toll on performance, Exeter’s best distance runners remained immune to it. Kieran Scannell ‘13, who led the team all season with excellent times, won the varsity race, coming in at 15:24.This year’s senior co-captains, Tyler Courville and Sam Gray, along with upper Holden Hammontree, also had great showings at the race, coming in at tenth, sixteenth and seventh, respectively. With the excellent times, Big Red placed first and claimed the New England Championship for the second consecutive year.Senior co-captain TJ Hodges described the attempt to become champions for the third year in a row “provides more motivation than pressure.” He will approach the season with a different perspective than simply as the captain of the league winners of the past two years.“Personally, I hope to maintain that same underdog hunger we had in 2011. We have an equal amount of obstacles to overcome as any other cross country team in our league, but we have the talent, motivation, and spirit to overcome each one,” Hodges said.Although the loss of talented runners from the Class of 2013 such as Scannell will be felt, Hodges remains confident that the team can fill those gaps with renewed practice and perseverance.“I am looking forward to seeing the team improve our already outstanding performances from last year,” he said.Hodges continued, “The depth that we have on this year’s roster is unbelievable, and it will be incredible to witness varsity and JV guys putting up times that are out of the norm.”