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Barrington makes a splash in Conant's new pool

Conant's new pool? It's way cool. But first things first:

The boys water polo teams from Barrington and Conant became the first to use it in competition on Monday in a game that was special for its own reasons.

Conant needed to win in order to have a realistic chance at sharing the Mid-Suburban West title with league-leading Barrington.

It turns out the visiting Broncos had something new on their mind, too: A first-ever conference championship.

And Barrington took a big step toward one by topping Conant 11-9 in a tense matchup in which neither team led by more than 2 goals.

In winning, Barrington managed to avoid something that would have been new to this team: losing.

Through 20 games, Barrington is unbeaten. At 8-0 against Mid-Suburban West foes, they've clinched a tie for the conference championship and have secured their spot against the East Division champ in the MSL title game.

"The thing about our guys this year is that it's a real team effort," said coach Scott Krasinski, who takes the lead role with varsity and credits head coach Rob Emary and volunteer assistant Butch Gavars with program-wide improvement. "It's been about hard work and dedication, and the support our players give to one another. We're a true team."

Which was reflected in the scoring, as Marshall Mathias (4) and Charlie Hoffmann (3) led the way, with single goals from Mitch Gavars, Chase Lesniak, Patrick Hogan and Matt Gouskos.

Conant senior Connor Schmitz was a force throughout and finished with 6 goals, including a successful penalty shot with 2:26 left that tied it at 8-8. But Barrington converted on a 6-on-4 opportunity and followed with a goal from Mathias on its next possession to grab a 2-goal lead with 1:34 left.

Conant's Braden Lamore scored from the wing to pull the Cougars within a goal before Mathias finished an open-goal opportunity with five seconds left.

"It feels really great, especially for me," said Lesniak, a senior. "My brother played on some Barrington teams that had a hard time winning, so it's nice to be on the other side of that."

Conant, meanwhile, can see that it has made meaningful progress despite the loss. The Cougars (15-2, 6-2) dropped an earlier matchup to Barrington 8-4 and were coming off a weekend first of their own, having won the Sandburg Tournament title and beaten perennial south side powers Andrew and Sandburg.

It's quite possible Conant and Barrington would meet in an upcoming sectional final, with state tournament advancement at stake. Until then, Conant coach Tim Daniel won't have any trouble devising a practice plan.

"We were 2-for-12 on our man-ups," he said. "We have a lot of things we can do better - that's sure one of them."

At least in one sense, Conant was a clear winner on Monday, as it didn't have to travel to a neighboring Dist. 211 high school for a game or practice.

The new pool is big upgrade. It has 10 lanes available for swimming practice, greatly improved viewing opportunities for spectators, natural light from a tier of high windows, on-deck showers to keep divers warm, and deep water just about everywhere.

As the first of the five Dist. 211 pool overhauls to be completed, Conant probably had it the toughest, with frequent facility-sharing trips to Schaumburg and Hoffman Estates for the boys and girls swim teams, plus the water polo teams this spring.

Fremd's pool is undergoing a similar overhaul now, with the Vikings water polo teams putting in plenty of time on the road.

Having tested the rehab waters first, the Cougars get the reward of having their home pool functional before the others.

"We're excited about it, and happy to have our pool back in action," said Conant athletic director John Kane. "Over time, especially after all the pools are finished, we think the improved space will make a big difference in our ability to field swimming teams and water polo teams."

For Daniel and his group, the payoff was more immediate.

"Our guys were just happy they didn't have to drive anywhere to play a game," he said.

Wheeling 8, Prospect 7: The Wildcats remained unbeaten and clinched a share of the Mid-Suburban East title with a decision over the Knights.

Wheeling (9-9, 8-0) would clinch an outright divisional crown with a victory in either of its final two games and has earned a spot in the MSL title game against Barrington.

Prospect (7-8, 6-2) is in second place in the MSL East, with both conference losses coming against Wheeling.

Buffalo Grove 15, Elk Grove 6: Chris Schulstad and Ryan Lawson both scored 6 goals to power the host Bison (6-15, 2-6) in MSL East play.

St. Viator 8, Maine South 7: Shea Boyer (4 goals) and Keegan Finn (3) paced the Lions (15-10) to a nonconference win as goalie Frank Skorski stopped 14 shots.

Schaumburg 14, Hoffman Estates 8: Tyler Gustafson (4 goals) and James Birriel (3) paced the Saxons (12-10, 3-5) in MSL West action while Dirhgam Nubani and Joey Smiley had 4 goals apiece for the Hawks (2-19, 0-8).

Fremd 10, Palatine 6: Dylan Assmann scored a team-best 4 goals to help the Vikings (10-6, 5-3) prevail at Palatine.

Top efforts for Palatine game from Ryan Schlaiss (4 goals, 4 ejections draw), Marcus Carter-Buckman (8 steals), Jacob Baran (3 assists, 4 steals) and Jake Conrad (11 saves).

Images: Conant opens new pool, falls 11-9 to Barrington

  Conant goalie Jacob Lawson moves the ball away from the net against Barrington at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Barrington's Patrick Hogan moves the ball during a varsity water polo match at Conant Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Barrington prepares to pass through traffic during a varsity water polo match at Conant Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant's goalie Jacob Lawson, left, lunges to stop a shot attempt by Barrington's Chase Lesniak during a varsity water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant's Mihir Patel, center, and Barrington's Patrick Hogan, top, battle for the ball during a varsity water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant's Braden Lamore, left, and Barrington's Patrick Hogan race for the ball during a varsity water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant's Connor Schmitz fires a shot against Barrington during a varsity water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant vs. Barrington during a varsity water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant's Mihir Patel, right, guards Barrington's John Fischer during a varsity water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant faces off against Barrington during a varsity boys water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant faces off against Barrington during a varsity boys water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant faces off against Barrington during a varsity boys water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Conant faces off against Barrington during a varsity boys water polo match at Conant on Monday night. The match was the first event hosted at Conant's new swimming pool. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
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