Boys water polo: Barrington edges Buffalo Grove, retains possession of MSL title

Any fan of possession-oriented water polo was lucky to have been in attendance for the Mid-Suburban League boys championship game on Wednesday at Buffalo Grove.

With a pair of sound defensive teams in action, not a single goal was scored via counter-attack, and protective offense was the order of the day.

From the very beginning, it felt like the kind of game where whichever team could figure out a way to score late would win. Which is exactly what happened, as Barrington junior Steven Fischer fed senior Troy Soto for the decisive even-strength goal on a tip-in with 42 seconds left.

That score broke up a tied game, and the Broncos denied the Bison on one final possession to win 7-6 in a rematch of last year's championship game.

It's a repeat championshp for Barrington (18-5), and it was anything but easy. The Broncos were without several key players, but that wouldn't have been obvious to someone seeing them play for the first time, because those thrust into the spotlight played so well.

Soto scored twice. Sophomore Dan Emary played meaningful minutes and drew a key ejection, and Sam Burrell and Jack Streeter were also keys for Barrington.

Coupled with the steady play of the Broncos' all-conference picks - Fischer, senior Ryan Cremer and junior goalie Wyatt Lindquist - plus a 4-goal effort from senior Albert Mohr, and it was just enough for the Broncos to don the back-to-back championship t-shirts procured in advance by head coach Rob Emary after the game.

Key to the outcome was Barrington's efficiency on man-up situations. The Broncos converted four of their six chances, many of which were generated by fierce play from Fischer.

"It was just a case of enough guys stepping up for us," said Barrington assistant coach Scott Krasinski. "We had a combination of illness and other factors keeping guys out of the lineup, but I'm just really pleased with how we responded to that as a group."

Buffalo Grove's group commitment to defending against Fischer in front of the goal early in the game paid off, as he was held scoreless in the first half. But it also opened up perimeter opportunities for others, and Mohr took advantage with 3 first-half snipes.

Meanwhile, the Bison (24-5) generated plenty of scoring opportunities for themselves. Carlos Salgado had a pair of first-half goals, and Michael Goubine also scored as Barrington held a 4-3 edge at the half.

Each team scored once in the third quarter. Fischer tallied first, and BG senior standout Kevin Carr answered later in the period.

Goubine's goal on a nice assist from Daniel Korol tied it at 5-5 early in the fourth quarter. Barrington went ahead as Mohr finished a man-up, but Korol tied it again with a sweet lob with 3:24 left.

After a series of fruitless possessions for both teams, Barrington called timeout with :50 left. Fischer ended up with the ball out near the 5-meter mark, drew some extra defensive attention and then managed to find Soto alone at the post for the decisive score.

"Our guys are disappointed with the outcome," said Buffalo Grove coach Scott Kopecky, "but I thought we played pretty well. We had two or three offensive plays that we wanted to run, and I thought we did a good job with them."

The goal for Buffalo Grove's senior-heavy group was to win the overall MSL championship. The Bison can take some solace from having come closer to achieving that goal than any other team from the MSL East.

"We've just been really focused on what we can do as a team," said Buffalo Grove senior Billy Wade, an all-conference pick (along with Carr and goalie Timothy Gerling) and also the first line of defense against Fischer early in the game. "For us it's really not about what one person can do. It's about what can happen with hard work and playing together."

The teams will have separate opportunities to advance to state. Barrington is the top seed in the Schaumburg sectional, while BG is the No. 2 seed in the sectional it will host.

Carr was pleased with his team's competitive display, a far better showing than last year's decisive loss at Barrington.

"I'm just thankful for my coaches and my teammates," he said. "We have a bunch of guys who are really committed to playing for one another, and I think that showed today. It was a much better effort than last year, that's for sure."

Krasinski welcomes the opportunity to hit the reset button in advance of playoff polo next week. Lindquist had recovered from a serious illness just in time to get back in net for the Broncos, who will be trying to earn a second straight state tournament berth.

"It was a great game, and we're really pleased to have come out on top," Krasinski said. "I'm pretty sure that's the best Buffalo Grove team I've seen. I mean, if you lined us up and played again, who knows?"

All-conference selections

Barrington: Steven Fischer (Jr.), Wyatt Lindquist (Jr.), Ryan Cremer (Sr.) Conant: Harris Dibek (Sr.), Alex Hirjoi (Jr.), Bryan Cho (Jr.); Fremd: Danny Konishi (Sr.), Derek Warnstedt (Sr.); Palatine: Sean O'Brien (Sr.); Schaumburg: Matt Soltau (Sr.), Ryan Gustafson (Jr.), Buffalo Grove: Kevin Carr (Sr.), Billy Wade (Sr.), Timothy Gerling (Sr.); Elk Grove: Nick Rosenorn (Sr.), Hersey: Alex Thielen (Sr.), Jack Casey (Jr.), Misha Nikiforov (Soph.); Prospect: Jacob Kosinski (Sr.), Dan Macina (Sr.); Rolling Meadows: Josh Carpenter (Sr.)