To any previous attendee of an Arcadia High School (AHS) Boys Varsity Water Polo game, the results of the Sept. 27 game against John Muir High School (JMHS) would be unsurprising, as Arcadia won 21-10. After all, they’ve been playing extraordinarily well so far this season, and are expected to continue that pattern in the Pacific League. 

Sophomore Andrea Hsu, an accomplished member of the Girls Water Polo team herself, voiced the general sentiment about the AHS Boys Varsity Water Polo team: “The boy’s team is outstanding. It’s incredible to watch them sync together to beat all odds.” Hsu further explained why their success is so impressive, describing water polo as a “very aggressive” and “physically demanding sport” that requires team chemistry and a strong bond.

So far, in the 2022 season, AHS has established their lineup of 14 boys as a force to be reckoned with. This is especially well-known by fellow league teams that have been losing matches to this team left and right for years. Their dominant streak continued in their recent game against JMHS, with the Apaches bringing home yet another win to start the Pacific League season for 2022-2023.

At 3:30 p.m., the sun shone bright on the AHS Aquatics Center as the ball was dropped into the pool by the official, and both AHS and Muir raced across the pool from their respective sides. In the first quarter of the game, AHS started out strong with sharp and accurate passes; Muir was left with very little possesion of the ball and was not able to get many shots off on goal. The score by the end of the first quarter reflected that game dynamic, with AHS leading 10-1. 

In the second quarter, the action in the water by team captain, sophomore Jaden Joemtree, helped AHS control their defensive area tightly. Joemtree played in a central position on defense in conjunction with the AHS goalkeeper, and assisted his teammates to make offensive plays on the other half of the pool. 

Arcadia’s number 2, sophomore Alan Yu, made an impressive shot block against a Muir player midway through the quarter, which led to AHS’ rapid shift into an offensive position as they controlled the game. Arcadia’s number 14, junior Karthik Villavan, also made an impressive play soon after, pressuring a Muir player to give up the ball and shift AHS to the attack once more. Team captain Joemtree did miss a close shot on goal late in the second quarter, but his teammates set him up for an even better shot and he scored another goal with four minutes left in the quarter. 

It is safe to say that AHS held the ball in Muir’s defensive half very successfully in the first half of the game; on the other side, Muir’s number 7 held possession near the half-line whenever the play restarted, but could do little to break past the AHS defense, as Arcadia’s number 17, senior Teddy Lu, and Yu held him in place.

Muir did eventually manage to bring the score to 14-6 to end the half but didn’t manage to stop Arcadia’s number 5, junior Alex Chenh, from jumping up to grab a pass from a teammate and shoot before coming back down. 

The stands were splashed in the mad scramble for first possession to start the second half, followed almost immediately by a near miss from AHS on a goal. This early play reflected the entirety of the second half well–highlights included a backhanded shot against the Muir defense and keeper by number 8 to score Arcadia’s fifteenth goal to Muir’s six, as well as a breakaway and easy goal by Arcadia to the top right corner of Muir’s net in the fourth quarter. 

The final score was 21-10. Overall, the Apaches had the long passes mastered in this game, while Muir passed short and without purpose. Though Muir employed many pump-fake moves in the third and fourth quarters, Arcadia easily kept them back most of the game to maintain their lead. 

The well-coordinated Arcadia team obviously did very well, but sophomore Alan Yu commented that there’s always further work that can be done.  

“I thought the game today went okay, but we could really improve our ability to work as a team,” said Yu. “We often find ourselves not on the same page and struggling with communicating to each other on both offense and defense.”

Yu’s idea may be something we see in the future from the AHS Boys Varsity Water Polo team, so make sure to catch the next game to watch them make it happen.

Photo courtesy of Sky Escobedo