Facing furious challenges, the men’s water polo team is still looking for its first victory next Wednesday at Mt. SAC at 4:15 p.m.
“We have to work really hard for the next game against Mt. SAC,” freshman Scott London said. “We haven’t had an easy game yet.”
London is working on regaining his conditioning which was temporary halted when he stopped playing organized water polo for a couple of years.
It looks like he has gained it back, because he scored the lone goal in the loss to Long Beach City, and scored another one against Pasadena City College.
London is not the only one trying to improve his fitness. The team also has improved its conditioning with strong practices.
That’s a good reason to get optimistic about the remaning games.
“I’m trying to get back in shape since I’ve stopped playing two years after playing three years in high school,” London said. “The team is getting in better shape; everyone is trying to improve.”
The Warriors have some talented players, but because it’s a young and inexperienced team, it has struggled with its inconsistency all season.
However, the team is trying hard to gel as a unit and is improving as the season continues.
“I have to learn to play the game on paper,” freshman Eric Weiner said.
The South Coast Conferences is very competitive, which has become a challenge for the young Warriors to gain any momentum.
It is the only conference to have three teams ranked in the state.
Other teams in the conference are tougher with their combination of experience and youth, which produce solid results.
However, assistant coach Monica Lizarraga-Papke says the team must continue maintaining its aggressiveness while also working on its overall play.
“We have to step it up,” Lizarraga-Papke said. “We have to stay aggressive and work on our passing and team defense.”
Coach Corey Stanbury said that while passing the ball in a proper direction is important, it is still the team’s weakness.
If the ball can’t be passed in a right spot, the ball will be stolen by the opposition.
“We are putting more emphasis on passing,” Stanbury said. “And every time they don’t make a good pass, they will be getting a growled at.”
The Warriors are trying their best in every game they have played, but their best hasn’t translated into victories.
The team may not have a victory, but it is looking forward to the game against L.A. Trade Tech on Oct. 20.
“We met them in the Ventura Tournament and it was a close game,” Matt Van Diepen, sophomore, said. “So we might win this time.”
Stanbury also said there is a possibility to win against L.A Trade Tech because of its close first encounter where the Warriors lost 11-9 at the Ventura Tournament.
In that game, the Warriors came back from a three-goal deficit to take the lead, but just could not hold the lead and eventually were defeated by two goals.
“We will play a lot better than in the Ventura Tournament,” Stanbury said. “We need to do a better job being more consistent with our defense and offense.”
