Boys water polo: With Maleski back, Stevenson sinks Libertyville
It won't take long to figure out what was missing in Stevenson senior All-American swimmer Dan Maleski's daily regimen, especially over the last 3-4 weeks.
"It was torture watching from the sidelines," said Maleski, one of many standout water polo players on the state's top-ranked Pats. "I really missed it. I had a little air pocket but I guess it's fairly common with taller athletes. It was so amazing, though, being back in the water tonight."
Maleski had suffered a collapsed lung during practice the first week of the season.
On Tuesday evening, he missed a couple of early shots in his return but still had plenty to do with Stevenson's 15-7 victory over host and upstart Libertyville.
Senior attacker Collin Kapecki blasted in the first goal for a 1-0 lead with 3:08 left in the first.
But Libertyville wasn't going anywhere.
The Cats, who are already 8-2 overall after winning 10 total games a year ago, answered right back when senior hole set Scott Villiard skipped one in past the outstretched arms of Stevenson keeper Charlie Day (13 saves) to knot it up 1-1.
The Pats (9-0 overall, 1-0 NSC) then came right back and wound up taking the lead for good 3-1 following back-to-back penalty shots by senior attacker Andrew Shashin and junior defender and attacker Eric Osuch. Senior defender Rahul Arun also scored to give the Pats a 4-1 lead heading to the second.
That's when Maleski found the touch, scoring twice as Stevenson separated itself by upping the advantage to 8-3 heading to halftime.
Shashin had later scored his second goal of the period off of a nice feed from Arun.
Senior utility player Billy Becker scored the lone second period goal for Libertyville.
Think the lead was safe? Not so fast.
Libertyville has been taking some numbers themselves this season, and the third period was testament to the grit and fortitude the Cats have shown.
Becker, Villiard, Michelotti, and Eric Turner accounted for 4 unanswered goals to open the third period and all of a sudden the deficit was only 1 at 8-7.
"Libertyville played well and made some good shots (in the third). They got the momentum and we just needed to regain control," said Pats coach Sean Wimer. "We have a lot of really good outside shooters and obviously it's great to have Dan (Maleski) back in. He's quite a presence and draws a lot of attention in the pool."
After the flurry by Libertyville, junior attacker Justin Ginsberg and Kapecki each scored to finish the third and give some of the momentum back to the visitors, who definitely took advantage of in outscoring Libertyville 5-0 in the final stanza.
Maleski scored twice, while Shashin also tallied his fourth of the game and senior attacker Varun Ganesh and Arun added single goals.
Libertyville junior keeper Jack Otto took a beating and was all over the place for the Cats to the tune of 15 saves.
Otto had taken a shot off the noggin late in the fourth and was submerged in the water for several seconds, but returned after a brief timeout.
"He's been incredible for us so far," said Cats first-year coach and former Stevenson girls standout polo player Kara Bosman. "We're excited to continue seeing where we stand and try and prove ourselves. Confidence has been a huge part of it and these guys have been a great team to be around."
Michelotti, Becker, and Villiard have been the main offensive threats to this point, while Marine-bound Turner adds muscle and power in the middle.