Varsity water polo head coach Erik Healy finished his 13th season with a 19-14-0 overall record and a 4-1-0 Mission League record. Losing to Mater Dei 6-8 in the CIF Division I quarterfinals, the team has already set its goals to rebound next year.
This year’s team comprised of seven seniors, five juniors and five sophomores. Healy said, “This was a relatively young team that performed very well based upon where we started and where we finished.”
Offense was heavily prioritized throughout the season as the team scored 372 goals in the 33 game season, averaging roughly 11 goals per game. Seven of the nineteen victories were by a margin of double digits.
Senior co-captain Alex Lee scored 38 goals and accounted for 40 steals on the season. “The team was motivated and worked really hard this season both in and out of the water,” Lee said. “We were fired up for our big games and played with a chip on our shoulder all season.”
Healy said, “We were led by experienced seniors and had a group of young energetic underclassmen who followed the seniors.”
Alternating between workouts in the pool and lifting in the weight room, the team began training early in the Spring of last year. Practices during the Summer and Fall focused on building team chemistry and working out set plays to implement in the season.
The Cubs fell short in their four season tournaments and in winning CIF. However, Lee is optimistic about the team next year.
Lee said, “With many [underclassmen]getting lots of minutes, next year’s team should have the potential to be great.”
After 13 years of coaching, Healy finds the last game of a season to be the toughest one, not because of the elimination but because of the loss of the seniors.
“As a coach, to coach your seniors for their last game is sad,” Healy said. “The guys have put in an unbelievable amount of effort and time into the program. To see them finish up is tough.”
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