Scouting DuPage County boys water polo
Top teams: Metea Valley, Naperville Central, Naperville North, Neuqua Valley, York.
Top games: Naperville North Tourney, March 8-9; Metea Valley at Lockport, March 11; Naperville Central at Metea Valley, March 12; Fenwick Tournament, March 14-15; Sandburg at York, March 18; Naperville Central at Naperville North, March 19; Metea Valley at Sandburg, March 20; York Invite, March 29-30; Neuqua Valley at Naperville Central, April 2; Naperville North at Conant, April 5; Naperville North Invite, April 6; Lyons Invite, April 5-6; Metea Valley at Neuqua Valley, April 9; Naperville Central Invite, April 12-13; Hinsdale South at York, April 15; Naperville North at Neuqua Valley, April 16; Barrington at Naperville Central, April 18; Neuqua Valley at Lyons, April 18; Metea Valley Tournament, April 19-20; Mundelein Quad, April 20; Naperville North at Barrington, April 25; Stevenson Tournament, April 26-27; Conant Tournament, April 26-27; Lincoln-Way East at Neuqua Valley, May 1; Sandburg at Naperville Central, May 1; West Suburban Conference meet, May 4; Stevenson Quad, May 4.
Top players: Josh Ceh (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Jonah Klein-Collins (Naperville Central, Sr.); Luke Klein-Collins (Naperville Central, Sr.); Dallys Dorsey (Waubonsie Valley, Jr.); Cameron Dougherty (Naperville Central, Jr.); Cayden Griffith (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Zach Griffith (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Andrew Hausoul (York, Soph.); Carson Hicks (York, Jr.); Jack Hiss (Neuqua Valley, Sr.).; Owen Jacobs (Naperville North, Jr.); Kamil Kawiecki (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Ben Lovick (Naperville North, Sr.); Isaac Marlott (York, Sr.); Tommy Matulis (Hinsdale South, Jr.); Chase McClure (Naperville North, Sr.); Michael McKenna (York, Sr.); Joesph Ofenloch (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Allen Rosenberg (Neuqua Valley, Jr.); Ryan Ruhde (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Bender Russo (Naperville Central, Sr.); Pierce Salafatinos (Neuqua Valley, Sr.); Brad Sanford (Naperville Central, Sr.); Jimmy Senese (Neuqua Valley, Soph.); Vignesh Sundaresan (Waubonsie Valley, Jr.); Rhys Tallentire (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Jack Tarantino (Naperville North, Jr.); Chris Thomas (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Riley Thompson (Naperville North, Jr.); Matt Townsend (Neuqua Valley, Sr.); Jack Wallace (Naperville North, Jr.); Nick Ward (York, Sr.); Jack Yurkovich (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Jack Zielinski (Waubonsie Valley, Jr.).
Outlook: Naperville Central remains the favorite to win the state title for the second year in a row. Naperville Central is seeking its third championship in four years, led by seniors Brad Sanford, Luke Klein-Collins, Jonah Klein-Collins and junior utility player Cameron Dougherty. Although the Redhawks have some big holes to fill, the seniors are a dominant group with plenty of big-game varsity experience.
"We need to figure our who plays best with whom in the water," Naperville Central coach Bill Salentine said. "We lost a couple of great players to graduation. They were leaders in and out of the water and directed the offense. It's just a matter of time to see who will step up and fill that role. I'm looking forward to seeing how we play this year. This group of seniors has been together for four years, and work well together."
After finishing with a 20-12 record last spring, York is aiming high due to the return of numerous standout players. Senior Issac Marlott and junior Jay Jensen headlines the attack, with Marlott tallying 111 goals last season.
"Isaac scored the bulk of our goals last year, so we're looking to form a more offensively balanced attack with other legitimate scoring options within our offense," York coach Brian Drumm said. "We want each player to find and develop into his role on the team, so individual skills within roles are important to our development this year. We're also hoping to build on our offensive and defensive systems."
Neuqua Valley is also relying on a solid group of seniors this season. Matt Townsend, Jack Hiss and Pierce Salafatinos join junior goalie Allen Rosenberg to form the core of the starting lineup.
Townsend scored over 100 goals last season, while Salafatinos passed the 50-goal mark.
"Matt's the leader on the field and his skills have gotten better and better, for his ability to pass is huge to the program," Neuqua Valley coach Chad Ganden said. "Jack Hiss is a great ballhandler and defender and makes good decisions. Allen is very smart and understands the game and the flow and a great blocker of shots."
The Wildcats play a challenging schedule, but the 12 seniors have high expectations this season following a 23-9 record.
"This is probably one of my deepest teams I've had," Ganden said. "We have a really deep bench and looking to go further in sectionals. We have to play smart. We have a lot of guys with speed and ability to swim well. We have a veteran team, and I'm looking for big things."
Waubonsie Valley is hoping to turn its fortunes around after a 12-20 campaign last season. The Warriors are relying on junior goalie Vignesh Sundaresan and seniors Ryan Ruhde, Josh Ceh, Chris Thomas and juniors Jack Zielinski and Dallys Dorsey.
"Our team is looking to capitalize on the man ups and trying to use our speed for counterattacks," Waubonsie Valley coach Mike McWhirter said. "We have an older more experienced team to be able to play with confidence with a strong goalie behind them.
"Jack and Dallys are a great combo, both have strong shots paired with a high level of awareness …. Ryan, Josh and Chris contribute speed, versatility and leadership and give us a strong counterattack and a higher level of confidence as a team knowing that we can adapt to situations and out swim most teams that we play."
Hinsdale South is coming off an up-and-down season with expectations to make a run at knocking off some quality teams. Seniors Joseph Ofenloch, Kamil Kawiecki and Jack Yurkovich join junior Tommy Matulis as the leaders on the team, according to Hinsdale South coach Elizabeth Walker.
"The key to our success this season includes building a strong team bond, executing proper defense and converting," Walker said. "We will go up against some very strong programs and that builds character."
Naperville North has a wealth of talented juniors who are looking to surpass last season's 18-13-1 record. Juniors Jack Tarantino, Owen Jacobs and Jack Wallace along with seniors Ben Lovick and Chase McClure form the core of the team.
"Our team will be successful if everyone can compete on the same page," Naperville North coach Martin Bell said. "We have a lot of returning athletes who were more role players last year. This season they need to work together to create a new team dynamic. It will start with our defense, blend into our counterattack game and finish with our power play. If we can find a way to be cohesive in all three of those areas, we could be a real force to be reckoned with."
After losing to Naperville North in the sectional quarterfinals last season, Metea Valley is another team seeking a 20-win season.
The Mustangs welcome back seniors Colin Szczesny and Jonathan Duval and junior Jimmy Cronin as leaders. Metea Valley coach Alex Gidlow said his team is relying on the senior class to handle a difficult schedule coupled with high expectations.
"We have a strong and experienced senior class that have already proven to be great leaders in and out of the pool," he said. "We will need them to continue to be great players and great teammates to add to the success they've already achieved."
"Colin has been a rock for us in the middle of the pool. His strength and knowledge of the game allows him to create space for either a shot of his own or for his teammates to get a better shot as he draws defenders in. Jimmy has been working tirelessly on enhancing his goaltending skills and he has been a great leaders to our goalies who are less experienced. We have a number of great leaders on the team that have made a big difference and will continue to be a positive influence for the rest of the team."
Hinsdale Central is looking for big things from Zach Griffith, Cayden Griffith and Rhys Tallentire after posting a 15-15 record last season. Cayden Griffith is coming off a 100-plus goal season, while goalie Zach Griffith is the backbone of the defense. "Our entire team is looking forward to working together to make a memorable and impactful season," Hinsdale Central coach Christy Brodell said.
- Bobby Narang