Acalanes Varsity Men’s Water Polo lost Wednesday night to the the mighty Miramonte Matadors in what may have been the most glorious victory the Dons have captured this entire season. Did you read that right? Yes, yes… indeed you did.
Heading into the game it was no secret that Miramonte is one of the top 5 teams in the entire United States, with a winning record as long as our Head Coach Nick Jordan is tall. Knowing this fact, our valiant warrior Dons bravely headed into a fight reminiscent of the Battle of Thermopylae — where a force of just 7000 Greek soldiers held off over 300,000 Persian warriors for three full days in 480 B.C. (for more info, enroll in AP World History next year.)
Right out of the gate the Mats were knocked back on their heels when Acalanes immediately took the lead 2-0 with powerful goals by Thomas Parrott (Sr.) and Borna Koopah (Fr.) The Matadors scrambled, substituting players and scratching their Water Polo caps as they tried to figure out what the heck hit them. As Junior Will Miller accurately stated grinning ear-to-ear in a post game interview: “Think about it! If we had all be struck by a meteor at that moment, we would have beat Miramonte 2-0 !!!”
The first quarter ended with a score of 3-6, the 3rd goal coming from Will Miller and 4 blocks by Goalie Fisher “The Barrier” Bradford holding back the Mats. By the half, Isaac Topp (Jr) had scored another goal, Mason Schlehr (Sr) had handily stolen the ball, and Bradford-Urban added 3 more saves to his tally with a half-time score of 4-11. Giddy with excitement at their sons incredible performance, Dons parents in the stands alternated between screaming, weeping, breathing into paper bags, and self-soothing with peanut butter cups handed out by moms Elizabeth Parrott and Meghvi Roig.
By the end of the game our gritty underdog team amassed 8 total goals with 3 being scored by Will Miller (Jr), along with goals by Gunnar Grant (Fr), Borna Koopah (Fr), Mason Schlehr (Sr), Thomas Parrott (Sr), and Isaac Topp (Jr.). Assists for the goals were given by Koopah, Schlehr, Adrian Anderson (So.), Alexandre Lavoie (So.), and Nico Roig (Sr.). Steals came from both Mason Schlehr and Nico Roig, while Ejections were Drawn by Will Miller, Borna Koopah, and Gunnar Grant. The spectacular performance by Goalie Bradford-Urban had the Miramonte stands buzzing with admiration and speculation as “Fish Net” turned in an incredible 11 total blocks, 2 Assists, and 1 Steal against the Mats. Complete game footage can be viewed on the YouTube channel “Acalanes Boys Water Polo” where the incredible performances of the full team can be seen, including Owen Hulst (Sr.) battling it out in the hole, Charlie Holmes (So.) harassing players twice his size, Aiden Castro (Fr) performing fantastic field blocks, Charles Schultz (Sr.) making incredible passes, Tsimur Havarko (Sr.) defending the goal, Mateo Picard (Sr.) fending off repeated assaults for the ball, Malleus Kadai (Sr.) calling out and directing the team at critical moments, and Ethan Zolboo (Sr.) taking possession with authority — along with injured teammates Peter Endemann (So) and Owen Andre (So) watching, supporting, and encouraging their team.
At the end of this victorious game although no player was carried off the pool deck like Rudy Ruettiger, that was only because there were not enough shoulders to carry each and every one of these boys who deserved it. The Dons Mens Varsity Water Polo players made Acalanes High School very, very proud last night and their victory will be remembered, not least of all by the Matadors who are still wincing from the unexpected beating they took.