After a tough loss in the Central Coast Section quarterfinals to powerhouse St. Francis High School last year, the Paly girls’ water polo team hopes its young talent and seasoned veterans can propel them to the top of the league.
After graduating top scorer Bucknell-bound Tara Murao and starting goalie Liza Dernehl, Palo Alto will rely on a crop of juniors and strong senior leadership to power through the regular season.
The girls have set their expectations high this year.
“We want to try to win leagues,” senior co-captain June Afshar said.
Third-year head coach Cory Olcott echoed the sentiment.
“One of our goals as a team is to play well together and to try and improve on last year’s finish [second] in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League,” Olcott said.
The team has been hard at work, enduring grueling double days during “Hell Week” preseason training. During the school year, they hold morning practices twice a week to condition and enforce fundamentals. Bonding activities such as dodge ball and group runs in costume have brought the team closer together.
“The team is a lot more cohesive this year,” senior co-captain Malaika Drebin said. “We are really committed and well-bonded. This year we need to play as a team, as opposed to last year when we had superstars but not much depth.”
Olcott has been impressed by the level of play so far and is ready for a strong season.
“The team looks terrific,” Olcott said. “It looks great; the younger players are really stepping up. We lost our leading scorer and starting goalie but the players behind them are really stepping up. Our team is super committed and I think they will do fine.”
Despite the team’s youth, both the coach and team believe it will not be a deciding factor when league play arrives.
“We have a young team but a strong team,” Drebin said.
The Vikings boast a core of experienced seniors in goalie Afshar, hole set Drebin and Shameem Jamil who compliments the duo with her speed and shooting ability. However they will need their younger players to make waves this season.
“Some players who should be taking on a larger role this year will be [juniors] Haley Conner, Rachel Harrus and Anna Glaves along with [sophomore] Skylar Dorosin who transferred from Castilleja [School],” Drebin said. “They will be stepping up as central players.”
As the season approaches, the Vikings have been hard at work practicing their counterattack, a major part of their offense.
“We always have a fair amount of speed,” Olcott said. “[Junior] Paige Devine is fast and we have speed all around. June looks terrific in goal and we will be leaning on her a fair amount to stop shots. We will let teams shoot on her more to counter more. Our front court defense is another big deal. How well we can press teams will be a factor in our games.”
With great team chemistry and a wealth of talent, Palo Alto has all the tools it needs to be a threat for the SCVAL title. The Vikings look to repeat their strong league performance and exceed expectations with a deep CCS playoff run.
Palo Alto’s first game will be the St. Francis tournament on Oct. 11. Time and location TBA.