Naperville Central dominates

In recent years Naperville Central has without question been the dominant boys water polo program in the area.

The Redhawks (29-4) proved their local dynasty is alive and well Saturday. They also earned a fourth straight trip to the state tournament with a 19-5 win over Naperville North in the Neuqua Valley sectional final.

Last year Naperville Central ended its season in the state tournament final with a loss to Fenwick in a highly competitive showdown against the Friars.

Naperville Central returned a strong core of players from the 2010 squad, including Kyle Rickert, Pat May and Kristian Altuve. The dynamic trio combined to score 12 of the Redhawks goals against the Huskies.

Rickert led his team with five goals on his own, but no other Redhawk may have had a larger impact on the game then senior goalie Pat Stablein.

Stablein finished the game with 9 saves, but more importantly he played a major role in setting up the Redhawks speedy counterattack, which became the heart and soul of Naperville Central’s offense.

“Stablein’s been great back in the cage all year,” said Central coach Bill Salentine. “Our offense starts with him.”

Naperville North captured early momentum by scoring the game’s first goal when Ryan Schickerling scored in the opening minutes

The Huskies fought hard to slow the game down, but Naperville Central’s size and talent was too much for the up-and-coming Huskies to handle.

“They execute every time to perfection on the counterattack,” said Naperville North coach John Blumthal. “We’re a little smaller and they have so many good athletes. We don’t have that kind of depth to match their big bodies.”

The future is looking bright for Naperville North, according to Blumthal.

“Our goal was definitely to get to this championship game. The program is definitely on the up with all our young talent,” he said.

Returning to the state tournament will be extra special for Stablein, who started in goal for the Redhawks in the 2010 state championship game.

“It feels great to get to go back to state again. It’s always a great feeling before the game,” Stablein said. “It is the big show, it’s something special. We’ll just have to put everything we have into it.”

The Redhawks will open the state tournament with a match against Sandburg at 8:15 p.m. Friday at Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire.