November 2, 2007

Sports

Willow Glen water polo takes off

By Carol Rosen
Editor

It isn’t often that we see genuine success at a grass roots level, but that’s exactly the fate of the Willow Glen High School water polo team, which didn’t really exist just a few years ago.

Willow Glen water polo seniors Charlie Kane, Geoffrey DuBridge, Josh Dombro, and Dustin Shean. Photos by Dan Miranda

That’s when WGHS alum and former water polo player Trevor Wiens stepped up to coach along with his neighbor Brian Balistreri. Neither has kids at the high school and both have full-time jobs, but the two have been working with the students for the past four years and both junior varsity and varsity continue to improve and win their games.

The parents couldn’t be happier, and in fact are also participating to help the teams achieve all that they can.

“For the last two years, Willow Glen has been in the bottom league of our division,” said water polo parent Teri Kane, “and we have won the bottom tier. Now we are in the top tier, where we’ve managed to take third place behind teams like Leland [well-known for their winning ways]. This year our junior varsity polo players are undefeated in league play,” she added.

For a team that had few to no players five years ago, WGHS’s water polo players have made great strides. For example, at a game earlier in October at Willow Glen’s home pool, the Rams’ Varsity team dominated the Lincoln Lions in a 15-8 victory. As a result, Willow Glen’s league record improved to 2-1 while Lincoln’s fell to 1-2.

The victory, according to parent David Doolin,was a total-team effort!

Kyle Tom played very strong defense in goal,while the scoring was spread out among every player on the roster. Sam Brandt led the offensive charge, scoring four goals. Other scorers included Chris Green (three goals), Charlie Kane (two), Chris McCarthy (two) and Geoffrey Dubridge, Tyler Paradiso, Josh Dombro, and Dustin Shean, each with one.

The Rams broke out early, taking a 5-1 lead in the first quarter. Brandt led the way as he scored the first three of his four goals. Lincoln outscored the Rams 3-2 in the second period, but the Rams put the game out of reach with a 5-2 third period with three consecutive goals by Green leading the charge.

Willow Glen senior Geoffrey Dubridge tries to get control of the ball from Lincoln's goalie Jerry Hernandez during a game on Oct. 10.

Highlighting the game was the fact it was “Senior’s Night.” It was Willow Glen’s final league-play home game. This served as the backdrop to a pre-game ceremony in which Seniors Josh Dombro, Geoffrey Dubridge, Charlie Kane and Dustin Shean and coaches Trevor Wiens and Brian Balistreri were recognized.

The team effort also extends to parents, who have taken to running a snack shack during home games and tournaments. Once the group refurbished it, they were able to offer referees, coaches and students the chance for food and drinks between games and can raise extra money for the coaches.

“Trevor and Brian have young families. Their kids go to Booksin and Shallenberger. They basically donate their time, splitting a stipend worth about $2,500. We have asked the families on the team to donate so that we can provide them some extra money,” said Kane, who adds that the parents also help out with carpooling players to games and things like ordering swimsuits and game day T-shirts.

But, she added, it’s a real team effort. The high school polo players are visiting Willow Glen Middle School to urge new players to join high school ranks. They invite the eighth graders to watch them play and to work out with them, to keep the future looking rosy!

Sports Briefs

Point Break Volleyball Club Clinics and Tryouts
We will be holding volleyball skills clinics on October 21 and 28 from 5-7 p.m. at Santa Clara High School. The cost is $20 per session. Players are encouraged to come out and meet the Point Break coaches, players, and families, and get a taste of the club’s “Live Aloha” style. Players of all ages who wish to brush up on their skills before the tryout season begins are welcome to participate, whether they plan to tryout for a Point Break team or not. Tryouts for Power and Area teams will be held on November 3 at Lynbrook High School for $25. Power team tryouts for all ages will be from 2:30-5:30 p.m. Area team tryouts for all ages will be from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Be sure to come at least 45 minutes early to check in. If you cannot make it on that date, there will be make-up tryouts on November 11 from 4-6 p.m. at Santa Clara High School for all ages, for both Power and Area teams. The cost is $25. For more information, please visit our website, www.pointbreakvbc.com.

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