Highlight: Boys’ Varsity Water Polo (09/26/2024)

By NICK BAKER and FORREST ZENG

Last Wednesday, Exeter’s Boys’ Varsity Water Polo team defeated Andover in a splash-tastic match at the Nekton Championship Pool, ending the game at 18-5. It comes as their second game this season after defeating Suffield Academy 21-8.

       Exeter quickly jumped ahead in the first quarter with a series of 6 consecutive goals, ending the quarter 6-1. The team played aggressively, pushing back Andover with snappy teamwork and an oppressive defense. In the second quarter, the ball found itself being blocked only a handful of times by Exeter goalie and senior Ethan Guo, while Exeter continued scoring goals in rapid succession.

        Andover was given a five-meter penalty shot immediately before the end of the second quarter for a foul on a player in the act of shooting, but Guo blocked the goal, drawing cheers from the crowd. Coach Don Mills praised Guo’s save, saying “Ethan Guo’s five-meter save on the penalty shot was a big deal. That was a memorable moment.”

          Exeter moved into the halftime huddle up 11-1 and in high spirits, hoping to extend their dominance through the second half.

        The team started the third quarter on a high note, scoring within 30 seconds. Shortly after that, Andover was given another 5-meter penalty shot, which they converted, upping the score to 12-2. Exeter responded with five goals in a row, sealing off the third quarter with a score of 17-2.

        For the first few minutes of the last quarter, the teams scuffled over the ball, before Andover scored a point with two minutes left on the clock. Exeter immediately responded, sending the score up to 18-3, before conceding two points to Andover a few minutes later, ending the game at a dominant 18-5

          “The team did very well,” described upper Andrew Gao. “Sportsmanship was a big part of our game, and we played very fairly.”

         Principal Bill Rawson attended the game from the pool deck. He praised the secondary goalie and senior Ethan Guo. “It’s the first time I’ve watched a water polo from the pool deck. I thought our backup goalie made some really great saves,” Rawson said.

          Before the game, team members were already fairly confident that they would beat Andover—it was only a question of what margin. Gao told The Exonian before the game, “I think we will win by 20 plus goals. I expect it.”

        Although the team came just short of 20 goals, lower Owen Lee struck a positive tone. “I’m sure we’ll make it there another day.” Lee also praised Gao’s performance. “Andrew Gao is a great offensive player. He definitely got up there with his shots,” Lee said.

         “We definitely dominated on the defensive end,” Mills said. “That created a lot of turnovers and a lot of offensive fast breaks, which we scored off of.” He also lauded the offense, saying he was “really happy about our offensive set, but especially happy about our defense.”

         Mills praised offensive player and upper James Faulhaber for his scoring ability. “A lot of the times you saw Faulhaber be our two-meter offensive player. The ball would get to him, and he’d be able to score from there.”

             Captain and senior Winston Wang emphasized the team’s preparation. “We implemented a lot of what we learned in practice into the game,” Wang said. “We just executed.”

           The team has been working hard since the start of the year. “We’ve been doing a lot in practice,” Wang said. “There isn’t much to say—the team is working really hard.”

           “Especially when we had five on six, our drills really paid off,” Lee said. “Doing the fall hammer drill and long beach drill really helped with that.”

           Though the team has fewer members than last year, it has been very cohesive and worked well together. “Last year we had 18 on the roster, while this year, we had 14. That’s a big change for us,” Gao noted. “Nevertheless, the team spirit’s good. We have a good amount of new people and old people left, so at this point, we’re still getting to know each other. But it’s been pretty good so far.”

         Mills agreed, describing the team as “very cohesive.” He emphasized how important the game was for the new players. “Both Ethan Lu and Owen Lee, new players, got some good playing time. It’s a good experience, which is important.”

         On the season ahead, Mills mentioned, “We have a tournament down at Greenwich High School called Carville Tournament. We’ll be able to play Brunswick over there, which is one of the top water polo schools on the East Coast. And then obviously our New England Championships at the end of the season is something we’re looking forward to.”

         “Our primary goal over the next few weeks is going to be working on our conditioning, getting our legs stronger,” added Mills, stressing the need for diligent training.

        Encapsulating the widespread sentiment after the game, Principal Rawson said, “Watching this team is super fun, it’s a strong team. I’m excited to see what lies ahead for the year.”