After months of preparation the Shore Aquatics 18-and-under boys’ water polo team capped its summer with a Gold Division championship at the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics, finishing the tournament with an undefeated 5-0 run in the Gold bracket.
In the gold-medal match, Long Beach defeated South Florida 13-11 to win the title in the gold division.
It was a memorable summer for the Shore team, which featured athletes from several local high schools including Wilson, Long Beach Poly, Edison, Los Alamitos and Millikan. Shore and Wilson head coach Zac Polmanteer said this was his first full season coaching the 18U level for Shore and it was one to remember.
“We really came together as a unit in about the last month and a half,” coach Zac Polmanteer said. “We had guys working as lifeguards, managing school, swim season — so getting everyone in the water together was tough. But the group stayed focused on building chemistry, and it showed.”
Shore qualified for the championship bracket by finishing fifth in the competitive Southern California zone. At the Junior Olympics, they missed out on the top bracket after a tight 11-10 loss to Diablo of Northern California. But with some stick-to-itiveness after a tough opening day, the team regrouped and made the most of their opportunity.
“We lost two games on Day 1, but the kids didn’t pack it in,” the coach said. “They committed to finishing strong. We treated Gold like it was the championship, and they went out and earned it.”
Shore punched their way to the gold-medal match after a thrilling semifinal win over Irvine in a shootout — their fourth matchup of the season with that team and the first time Shore came out on top.
“Something’s gotta give,” Polmanteer said of defeating Irvine. “Statistically it’s harder to beat a team two or three times a year than it is to just win once.”
Wilson’s Vaugh Baker was the team’s leading scorer, and he wasn’t the only Bruin that made an impact for the Shore team. Baker was joined by teammates Christian Marov-Perez and Fernando Rejon to give the team some existing chemistry.
Along with the Bruins, Edison’s Thomas Emerson and Sebastian Mok were leaders for the team.
“(Emerson) was important to our offense,” Polmanteer said. “A lot of teams changed their defense based on him being in the water.”
Polmanteer said he had a great time coaching the team and sharing the memorable outcome.
“It felt like a long season,” Polmanteer said. “All the teams are so strong at that level and most of the kids are still playing in our area and they’re all 18 and they all want to play in college or are already committed to play. So, there’s just a really gnarly level of competition and expectation – which is exhausting. But, I had a great time doing it and hope I do it again next year.”
Shore Aquatics Results:
18 and under Boys Gold Division: 1st, 25th in nation (Coached by Zac Polmanteer and Luke Malecka)
16 and under boys red team in Gold Division: 3rd, 27th in nation (Coached by Louis Hackett)
16 and under boys black team in Classic Division: 4th, 52nd in nation (Coached by Alec Johnson and Caleb Francisco)
10 and under boys in Gold Division: 5th, 29th in nation (Coached by Yves Medrano and Adam Lee)
14 and under boys in Platinum Division: 6th, 6th in nation (Coached by Rober Lynn)
14 and under boys black team in Classic Division: 7th, 79th in nation (Coached by Justin Greenwood)
12 and under boys team in Platinum Division: 23rd, 23rd in nation (Coached by Ian Escoto and Charlie Pruett)
