Scouting DuPage County girls water polo
Top teams: Naperville Central, Naperville North, Neuqua Valley, York.
Top players: Karly Berger (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Rylee Brower (Naperville Central, Jr.); Lexie Budnick (Metea Valley, Jr.); Maria Campbell (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Alex Cerra (Metea Valley, Sr.); Nicole Conway (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Gabby Duval (Metea Valley, Jr.); Olivia Eiken (Naperville North, Sr.); Becca Farmer (Waubonsie Valley, So.); Sadie Gregory (Metea Valley, Jr.); Anne Marie Gunn (Naperville Central, Sr.); Alli Hansen (Naperville Central, Sr.); Alli Horn (Naperville North, Jr.); Sydney Hutchinson (York, Jr.); Sofia Koledin (Hinsdale South, Jr.); Mary Kress (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Sarah Lewand (York, Sr.); Marissa Logan (York, Jr.); Tina McBride (Naperville North, Sr.); Zoe Relias (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Isabelle Rocco (Naperville North, Jr.); Emily Rodgers (Naperville Central, Sr.); Zoe Salfatinos (Neuqua Valley, Sr.); Anna Scovill (Metea Valley, Jr.); Heather Sterchele (Neuqua Valley, Sr.); Briana Veselik (Hinsdale South, Jr.); Emily Vollmer (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Moleigh Waldherr (York, Fr.); Emily Westlove (Naperville Central, Sr.)
Outlook: When we last saw Naperville Central last spring, the Redhawks finished second in state with a 31-5 record. The team returns a handful of players from that squad that should help the Redhawks make another deep postseason run. Two-time all-state selection Emily Westlove, who will play at McKendree University next season, scored 79 goals as a junior. Senior Alli Hansen, who is drawing Division I interest, contributed big with 56 goals and 41 assists. Senior Anne Marie Gunn came through with 15 goals, 32 assists and 81 steals. More scoring punch returns with senior Emily Rodgers, who racked up 32 goals, 51 assists and 65 steals as a junior. Westlove, Hansen, Gunn and Rodgers are returning starters and have started every game since their sophomore season. "The question this year is who steps up to take the remaining starting spots," said Redhawks coach Jeff Plackett. Junior Rylee Brower scored 25 goals in 2016 as she backed up two-time All-America Kaela Codo, now playing at San Diego State, and will play a larger role this season. Senior Sara Campbell will take over in net having played the last couple of seasons behind the now graduated Faith Vandercar, an all-state pick. Campbell started seven games as a sophomore. Plackett expects contributions also from Sarah Meyer, Charlotte Albright and Jodie Nelson.
It was another big season for Naperville North, which finished 16-14 and reached the Metea Valley sectional final before falling to Naperville Central. Coach Andy McWhirter speaks highly of the 2017 Huskies with their experience and speed. There are some top players returning, but he's stressing to his team for it to become a challenge for opponents to deal with up and down the lineup. "We graduated a couple of key players. The important thing is for players that start and on the bench to be a constant threat at their positions." Senior Olivia Eiken and juniors Isabelle Rocco and Alli Horn along with senior starting goalie Tina McBride will spark the Huskies' starting lineup. "The kids did a lot of good off-season work.
Defense is on the top of the list for the Metea Valley Mustangs this year. The team looks to improve upon its .500 mark from 2016 and sectional quarterfinal appearance. "It's about defensive awareness and the major points of not getting behind players, keeping the hands up and not making unnecessary fouls," said Metea coach Wyatt Jansen. Senior Alex Cerra is back and Jansen said the team will rely on a big group of juniors, that, according to Jansen, will go a long way in determining the Mustangs' fate this season, including Gabby Duval, Sadie Gregory, Anna Scovill and Lexie Budnick. "We have a lot of athleticism, a lot of speed. Those are good qualities," Jansen said. "It's a cliché, but everything starts with defense."
First-year coach Cara Stack leads a young Neuqua team with plenty of skill going for it as it tries to improve upon last season's 12-15 finish. The Wildcats, though, did reach the semifinals of the Metea Valley sectional before falling to Naperville North. "Our team's strengths are speed as well as the young team that we have. We are strong with our swimming and endurance, making it difficult for other teams to keep up with our pace of play," Stack said. Seniors Zoe Salfatinos and Heather Sterchele bring experience to the Wildcats' lineup. Salfatinos will continue playing water polo next year at Virginia Military Institute and will be again a playmaker and leader for Neuqua. Stack said she is stressing to her team the need for effective communication. "I want them to talk amongst themselves so everyone is aware of the situation match in and match out," she said. The Neuqua coach said she has liked what she's seen so far. "We're a young team with few seniors. I've been impressed with how the younger players have taken the initiative in tryouts and the first few practices."
Waubonsie Valley made some strides last season and coach Kelsey Sopron expressed confidence that while some who played key roles in 2016 graduated, the players on this spring's squad are capable of success as well. The team was 15-14 overall and went 2-2 in the DuPage Valley Conference. For the first time in 10 years, the Warriors had a first-round sectional bye. "We are a young team this year with a lot of talent. They show up every day with eagerness to perform to be the best of their ability. They push and challenge each other to make the team successful," Sopron said. Leading scorer Alex Triko, a junior, returns after scoring 69 goals last season. Senior goalie Nicole Conway is back in net and senior Maria Campbell also returns to the lineup after leading the Warriors in steals (33) and assists (37) last year. Sophomore Becca Farmer adds spark to Waubonsie's offense after scoring 55 goals on the JV squad.
Hinsdale Central boasts depth as a strength as it returns key players from last season's 16-12-1 squad that reached sectional quarterfinal play. "We have a deep team due to large senior and junior classes. Having three players with three years of experience on the varsity level provides the team with strong leadership. Our team is close knit with a lot of experience playing together. This experience leads to strong team chemistry in the water," coach Christopher Ortiz said. The team's leading scorer and steals leader is back. Ortiz said Zoe Relias' quick shot is her key at scoring on breakaways. Senior Karly Berger was a top 5 scorer from last year, and senior Mary Kress was the team's third-leading scorer. The Hinsdale Central coach expects junior Maddie Fowler, the JV's leading scorer in 2016, to make an instant impact on varsity.
Hinsdale South coach Landon Joiner wants the Hornets to win more but also wants to focus on building a team atmosphere and encouraging having fun in the sport. "We're low on numbers, but the girls are 10 times better than they were last year," Joiner said. The team was 2-26 last season with just one senior on this spring's roster, Emily Vollmer, who provides speed to the lineup. Joiner said that the Hornets will also rely on the skill of junior Briana Veselik and the work of junior goalie Sofia Koledin.
York enjoyed one of the most successful seasons in the history of the girls water polo program, finishing 20-10 and reaching its own sectional semifinal before losing to eventual state champ Fenwick. Interest has increased in the Dukes. "We had 44 girls come out for water polo, the most we've ever had," coach Mark Giuliani said. "We had cuts for the first time." York graduated key players from last season's squad, but the York coach said the change this spring is not a bad one. "We will be a much more evenly balanced team," Giuliani said. Senior Sarah Lewand returns for her third varsity season as goalie. Juniors that are expected to make an impact and have speed crucial to the Dukes' lineup are Sydney Hutchinson and Marissa Logan. Also expected to contribute is Moleigh Waldherr, the lone freshman on the roster. "We always stress communication, which helps the fluidity of the offense and defense and defensively we need to protect against the counter attack especially against some of the teams that we'll be playing," Giuliani said.
Top games: Red Devil Invite, March 11; Naperville Tournament at Metea Valley, March 10-11; Neuqua Valley at Metea Valley, March 14; Hinsdale Central at York, March 14; Naperville Central Invitational, March 17-18; Waubonsie Valley at Whitney Young Lady Dolphin Invite, March 18; Naperville Central at Naperville North, March 21; Lyons at York, March 21; Oak Park-River Forest at York, March 23; Neuqua Valley at Naperville Central, April 4; Waubonsie Valley at Naperville North, April 4; Hinsdale Central at Lyons Township, April 5; Hinsdale Central at Glenbrook South Tournament, April 8; Fenwick Tournament, April 7-8; Waubonsie Valley at Deerfield Hawaiian Islands Invite, April 8; Hinsdale Central at Hinsdale South, April 10; Naperville North at Metea Valley, April 11; Waubonsie Valley at Neuqua Valley, April 11; Naperville North at York Invite, April 15; Naperville North at Neuqua Valley, April 18; Metea Valley at Naperville Central, April 18; Lyons at Neuqua Valley, April 20; Mother McAuley at Naperville Central, April 25; Stevenson Tournament, May 6; Metea Valley Mustang Invite, May 6.