Scouting boys water polo

Barrington coach Adam Steffen has high expectations for a team that has a high water polo IQ. "Usually we get a lot of swimmers who play polo," he said. "This year we have water polo players." Key to the team's success will be senior scoring threats David Poetz, Andy Gust, and Mike Byron. Other key players figure to be Mark Larsen, Micah Koenig, Mike Reingo, Brendan Lesniak and goalkeepers Chris Asta and Sam Kowhoer. The Broncos shot out to a 7-1 victory heading into Lake County tournament play and hope to eventually battle Schaumburg for conference and sectional honors.

Buffalo Grove picked up an 8-6 double overtime win against Prospect on Thursday as Matt Block had a pair of goals in regulation and another in the second OT. Other keys for BG figure to be Brad Lotzer, Glen Bernard and Matt Cooney.

Conant has a new coach in Tim Daniel, and he's hopeful that a senior-led group can produce strong results. Those seniors include John Hansen, Tony Passero, Greg Longo, Jared Bauman, Tyler Kowaleski, and Brett Johnsen. Hansen will primarily play the 2-meter position, and Passero will handle goalkeeping. Other key players include juniors Ryan Chiero, Anton Andonvic, Vladimer Petrovic, backup goalie Steve Siska and Dan Bernacki. Chiero will be called on to sprint for the ball and play a variety of positions. Sophomores to watch include Brandon Chic and Jerry Flowers. "I am looking at a lot of players to play all the positions in the pool," said McDaniel. "As far as team goals, we are looking to constantly improve from game to game and practice to practice. We feel that we have a team that could surprise people at the end of the season."

Elk Grove struggled to get wins last season but the experience helped created a stronger varsity team this spring. Coach Bill Christian will be counting on senior field players Bart Pienkowski and Alex Kraus and senior goalie/field player Brian Cunningham. Key additions from last year's JV figure to include Wence Aquila, Tyler Bell, Keith Fernandez, Ben Redding and Mavenck Enolva. "This year I feel we will be stronger on offense," said Christian. "Our experience JV will make this year's varsity stronger."

First-year Fremd coach Alexa Rodheim is counting on production from senior co-captains Zach VanderLogt and Chris Mackey, as well as returning players Thomas Orlowski, Brent Caras, Ray Raff, Mike Freeman (GK) and hole set Evan Ruggiero. The Vikings finished 10-13 last season but are optimistic about a better finish this spring. "We just want to have a positive attitude and keep improving," said Rodheim.

Hersey coach Jeff Baker has two main goals this spring: Win an MSL East title, and win a state tournament game. Both would be firsts for the Huskies, thought they've come close in past seasons to winning the East, with only double overtime losses to Prospect and BG in recent years keeping them from a divisional crown. Keys this season for Hersey will be seniors Pat Chamberlain (goalkeeper) and John Poelking (hole set) and the continued development on Eric Engleson, Brian McKee, Chris Workman and Stephen Petro.

At Hoffman Estates, Chris Fetterman has a handful of proven competitors and reason for optimism. Alex Jessee figures to be a key 2-meter defender and offensive set; Josh Vanhee will play the 2-meter spot offensively with Mike Christen and Paul Organ on the wings. Newcomer Brian Brajczewski is expected to have an impact, also as a winger.

Prospect coach Dan Gentry is trying to get a promising group enough pool time to realize its full potential. The Knights are missing exchange student Charlie Mau, but hole set Mike McPartlin and gunners Joe Stelnicki, Andrew Kukhar and Andrew Bowman. Gentry is also seeing strong development from goalie Marty Kennedy and from Jimmy Kemling, and he plans to use a deeper rotation to keep players fresh. "As usual, our defense will be very strong," Gentry. "For us, it's a question of getting it together on the offensive end."

Rolling Meadows coach Bill Christian seems to have his program headed in the right direction. The Mustangs won seven of their first eight games, including a 14-4 win against Wheeling on Wednesday. Meadows' key players figure to be returning players Danny Vockeroth, Pat LeBuhn and Damien Fitzsimons, with important contributions expected from Danny Briggs, Artie Checcin, James Waterloo and Travis Harrell.

Schaumburg coach Tom Gallagher has an impressive group of returning players from last year's state qualifying team. The Saxons will relay on 6-foot-6 senior Chris Corbett and a strong group of proven players such as Aaron Johnson, Anthony Darovec, Eddie Walsh, Pat Kraulis, Brandon Kase and goalkeeper Neal Salemi. Expectations are high for the Saxons, and so far they are delivering - Schaumburg won the Hoffman Estates tournament last weekend.

First-year St. Viator coach Everardo Leon is seeing good results so far, including Wednesday's 11-6 victory over Hersey. He'll rely on senior Andy Brehm plus Eric Primdahl, Pat Cleary, Greg O'Connor, Edward Soler and Ryan Boyer. "I'm just trying to get a new attitude," said Leon. "So far, it's going pretty well. We'll see how we respond after spring break."

Wheeling coach Jessica Temple lost 12 seniors to graduation, so it may take a while to settle everyone into their roles. The Wildcats have seven new starters, led by senior captains, Seth Pawlow (wing) and Joey Williams(wing). Juniors Tim McDaniel (wing), Jivko Simeonov (utility) and Brandon Kirchens (defensive hole), along with sophomores Clark Jensen (hole-set/wing) and Shane McDade (goalkeeper) complete the starting lineup. Two other players to watch are sophomores Chris Prelletz (utility) and Andy Eiter (wing). "This year is all about working together as a team and trying to figure out which position each player fits best," said Temple. "Our goals for this year are to gain experience, develop team leadership and have fun."

- Aaron Gabriel