Wopo Claims 4th Against Elite Competition
The boys’ varsity water polo team won Wednesday’s game against St. John’s Prep School and finished in Fourth Place in the Cardinal Cup Tournament on Saturday, contributing to a strong season with a record of eight wins and three losses.
“It was a great chance for them to get some quality playing time and really put to use the lessons and skills they’ve been learning during our first few weeks of practice.”
On Wednesday, the team scored sixteen goals to St. John’s five. Big Red played its Saturday games in Greenwich, Connecticut. The team triumphed over the Naval Academy Water Polo Club squad 10-9, and lost hard-fought games against Greenwich High School 7-11 and the Brunswick School 5-17.
The team highlighted its Wednesday game as presenting an important opportunity for some of the substitute players to gain game experience. According to senior Will Soltas, since Exeter was leading by a wide margin early on in the game, the second-string players were substituted in. Soltas said, “It was a great chance for them to get some quality playing time and really put to use the lessons and skills they’ve been learning during our first few weeks of practice.”
Many of these players were called upon again in the Saturday tournament, as one of the starting seniors, Avery Giles, was sidelined with a hand injury and almost all of the uppers were taking the PSAT during the match. In addition to playing with a reduced roster, the team was challenged by playing all away games on Saturday. Upper Troy Marrero said the team struggled through “playing on Saturday with a depleted team in a pool that was foreign to us.”
Despite these challenges, Big Red beat the Naval Academy Club team in a collective effort. The team also played a strong match against ten-time defending tournament champions Greenwich High School. Exeter played a skillful first half fueled by the momentum from its first win, and kept the score close, with six goals to five.
However, the team grew tired over the course of the second half and later fell to Greenwich High’s team. Soltas said, “Despite the loss, it was the best we’ve ever played as a team.” He added that the game showcased the substitute players’ improvement over the course of the season. “It was great to see our bench players rise to the occasion and be formidable opponents against some of the best teams on the East Coast,” Soltas said.
In addition to allowing all players to show their skill, the games highlighted the captains’ spirit. Upper Troy Marrero praised one of the team’s co-captains, senior Taylor Walshe, for his determination. “Captain Taylor Walshe never gave up, no matter the score,” Marrero said. Soltas added that lower Charlie Venci played notably well in the tournament. Venci scored the first goal against the Navy team, starting the day off with strong momentum. “Venci put on an incredible performance and really stood out as a dependable, intelligent and integral part of our team,” Soltas said.
The games showed the players’ strength and taught the team valuable lessons. “We need to practice, and there is still work to be done,” Marrero said. Big Red will show the results of its hard work in the coming week in a game against Deerfield Academy. Marrero succinctly summarized the team’s goals for the week, saying the team hopes to “beat Deerfield.”