Scouting DuPage County boys water polo
Top teams: Naperville Central, Naperville North
Top games: Naperville Quint, March 11-12; Naperville Central at Fenwick Dan Lynch Classic, March 17-19; York at Schaumburg Tournament, March 18-19; Waubonsie Valley at Lincoln-Way North Tournament, March 19; Naperville Central at Naperville North, March 22; Hinsdale Central at Neuqua Valley, March 22; York Tournament, April 1-2; Neuqua Valley at Naperville Central, April 5; Hinsdale Central at Lyons Township, April 6; Hinsdale Central at Naperville North, April 7; Hinsdale Central at Hinsdale South, April 11; Best of West Tournament, April 15-16; Waubonsie Valley hosts Warrior Invite, April 16; York at Hinsdale South, April 18; Naperville North at Neuqua Valley, April 19; Neuqua Valley hosts Valley Varsity Tournament, April 23; Neuqua Valley at Conant Tournament, April 29-30; Naperville Central at Stevenson Tournament, April 29-30; Naperville North at Stevenson, May 4; Metea Valley hosts Mustang Varsity Tournament, May 7.
Top players: Kay Andresson (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Riley Byrne (Metea Valley, Jr.); Brian Calabrese (Naperville Central, Sr.); Charlie Calvo (Naperville North, Sr.); Mikey Corson (Hinsdale South, Jr.); Joey Dalesandro (Neuqua Valley, Sr.); Josh Del Rosario Rivera (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Matt Flanders (Metea Valley, Jr.); Cam Gidlow (Metea Valley, Sr.); Kyle Jackson (Naperville Central, Sr.); Cole Jacobs (Naperville North, Jr.); Jordan Jopes (York, Sr.); Ryan Kirin (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Brian Lapham (Naperville North, Sr.); Jimmy Lee (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Matt Magee (Naperville North, Sr.); Alex Marlott (York, Jr.); Jared Marrs (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Matt McCormack (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Tyler McKenna (York, Sr.); Reilly McDonnell (Naperville North, Sr.); Jon McWhirter (Waubonsie Valley, Sr.); Danny Milosevich (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Brandon Morrow (Naperville North, Jr.); Steven Mungovan (Hinsdale Central, Sr.); Charlie Ovens (Naperville North, Sr.); Keegan Riley (Metea Valley, Sr.); Jack Roche (Naperville North, Sr.); Troy Salafatinos (Neuqua Valley, Sr.); Danny Savage (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Mason Schmidt (Hinsdale Central, Jr.); Nick Stablein (Naperville Central, Sr.); Matt Sternik (Hinsdale South, Sr.); Danny Stumpf (York, Sr.), Wyatt Tiscareno (Waubonsie Valley, Jr.); Nolan Vaughn (Naperville Central, Jr.); Nick Walker (Naperville Central, Sr.); Spencer Wallace (Naperville North, Sr.), Spencer Weiland (Waubonsie Valley, Jr.); Nick Zillier (Naperville North, Jr.).
Outlook: Naperville Central returns many of those responsible for last season's 29-2 record and state quarterfinal appearance and ready for another run toward state. "We have reloaded. It should be a very fast team with several state team swimmers playing," coach Bill Salentine said. Much of the Redhawks' offense returns with senior Nick Walker coming off a junior season of 113 goals and 66 assists. Right behind him is senior Kyle Jackson, who finished with 92 goals and 64 assists. The lineup is also boosted by the experience of seniors Nick Stablein and Brian Calabrese and that of junior Nolan Vaughn. Salentine also is expecting freshman Kent Emden to make an impact. The Redhawks will be tested March 17-18 at Fenwick's Dan Lynch Classic and in late April at the Stevenson Tournament. "Those tournaments will be key for evaluating strengths and weaknesses of the team," he said.
Naperville North is looking for help up and down its roster this season, and coach Martin Bell believes the Huskies will get that help. "Our team will be based on team play, strong defense and bench depth. We don't have a go-to player, so our wins will come by committee," he said. Plenty of veterans from last season's 18-12-1 and sectional semifinalist team return, including senior goalie Jack Roche, senior attackers Reilly McDonnell, Spencer Wallace and Charlie Calvo along with senior center defender Matt Magee. The experience continues with junior utility Cole Jacobs and centers Nick Zillier and Brandon Morrow, also juniors. Bell also expects contributions from seniors Brian Lapham and Charlie Ovens. "Our strength of schedule is very high and we have a lot of great games to watch. We are already scheduled to play Naperville Central and Neuqua Valley twice. We will also see Stevenson the week prior to sectionals," Bell said.
Last season's Neuqua Valley squad that went 25-8 and reached the sectional semifinals was heavy with seniors. Coach Adam Hoffer is optimistic that given time the 2016 Wildcats will be strong right when it counts, the postseason. "We look to get more competitive as a team as the season goes on and hope to peak for sectionals," he said. Senior Joey Dalesandro is a top all-around player and finished with 82 goals, 196 steals and 88 assists last season. Hoffer expects Joey Hiss and Jack Hiss, a freshman, to be strong contributors to Neuqua's counterattack. Senior Troy Salafatinos becomes the Wildcats' primary center and senior J.P. Leshock their top lefty. Junior Adam McGovern will play a larger role as the main center defender. Senior Jordan Beck and junior Jacob Cunningham will battle for the starting goalie job. Junior Kyle Geekie and senior Brandon Gorski are expected to contribute in the starting lineup. "We hope to be competitive with our top (DuPage Valley Conference) and sectional opponents, Naperville North and Naperville Central, as the season progresses," Hoffer said.
Metea Valley coach Andrew Peterman is counting on the core of last season's team returning to improve upon last year's 3-27 mark. "We only graduated three players last year, so we are looking to build on the fact that the core of our team is returning again this year. Our team has been building a strong, positive culture. Our team feels that they are capable of making a large improvement on their overall record and improving their sectional seeding," he said. Peterman expects junior goalie Riley Byrne, senior utility Cam Gidlow, junior utility Matt Flanders and senior 2-meter player Keegan Riley to be at the forefront of the team.
Four returning starters are the foundation for Waubonsie Valley as it enters 2016 after finishing the previous season 14-14 with a sectional quarterfinal appearance. "With a couple of games under their belt, they'll understand the chemistry and how each other plays the game. We're very eager to start the season and have many team and personal goals set," coach Jeff Davis said. Seniors Kay Andresson, Jon McWhirter and Jared Marrs and juniors Wyatt Tiscareno and Spencer Weiland are the top returning players. Davis also expects contributions from new varsity players Cole Steffl, a sophomore, and Josh Celi, a freshman. "When the boys are focused and ready to play, Waubonsie is capable of the unexpected. With Cameron Steele and Cedrick Chan graduating last year, lots of boys have stepped up to become a team leader. It's going to be an exciting season," Davis said.
York coach Brian Drumm is optimistic that this year's Dukes can take a step forward from last season's 14-16 record and go further than a sectional quarterfinal. "We return eight regulars from last season's team, so we are hoping to build on last season and make great strides," he said. Among the veterans back is Jordan Jopes, the team's MVP in 2015, along with leading scorers Danny Stumpf and Alex Marlott. Tyler McKenna will be in the nets for his second season and is one of the top goalies in the West Suburban Conference.
Hinsdale South made big progress last season and the Hornets are anxious to improve upon that this spring. "Our seniors have come off the winningest season ever (9-19) and are looking to expand on that this year," coach Beth Walker said. Junior Mike Corson returns as goalie and seniors Danny Milosevich, Danny Savage, Ryan Kirin, Matt McCormack and Matt Sternik are the backbone of the team's experience. Walker expects senior Haddy Khatib, a transfer from Lockport, to add a lot of the offense along with junior James Kiwiet.
Teamwork will be the key as Hinsdale Central aims to improve upon last spring's 10-22 showing. "This is a really special group because they work really well together," coach Christina Brodell said. "They work off each other's strengths and are hungry to win. Our seniors leaders will play a pivotal role in our success. Right now I think we have a lot of opportunities to win some competitive games." Leading the way for the Red Devils are seniors Jimmy Lee, Steven Mungovan and Josh Del Rosario Rivera and junior Mason Schmidt.