By snoadmin
Long Beach State men’s water polo head coach Gavin Arroyo will enter his second season with a more experienced lineup that features six starters from last season.
Along with a No. 9 preseason ranking in the National Varsity Men’s Water Polo poll this season, LBSU will also inherit a grueling schedule that features early road games at USC, the top-ranked team in the preseason poll, and UC San Diego, which ranked eighth in the preseason poll.
LBSU must also travel to UC Berkeley to face the defending national champions in late October, then begin November at sixth-ranked Pepperdine University.
Amid all of the tough games, Arroyo said he thought little of the rankings.
“Having to play at USC, Cal and Pepperdine – those places are not easy to win at,” Arroyo said. “I think we’re in the hunt; there will be a lot of one-goal games.”
Nearly half of the team’s games last season – 11 of 28 games – were decided by only one goal. LBSU went 5-6 in those games, winning its last game against UC Irvine 12-11 to take seventh place in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament.
The close contests were something Arroyo thought hard about during the off-season, as he stressed mental toughness toward his team.
“Everybody is going to be tired in the fourth,” Arroyo said. “Our focus is trying to execute and think while we’re fatigued.”
Last season was a year of development for LBSU, with only three seniors in the lineup. All-American Jay Gerardi (49 goals in 2006) was one of them and the team struggled with consistent effort throughout the 2006 season, according to Arroyo.
However, many scorers will return from last season, and the roster will have five seniors this time. Arroyo said he expects seniors Steve MacKenzie, Clint Wilson and Travis Buchanan to “set the tone, from a leadership standpoint.”
“It is a good advantage to have a lot of people who played last year,” Arroyo said.
MacKenzie, the team’s starting goalkeeper, had 256 saves in 27 games last season. Wilson was the team’s third-leading scorer last year, with 30 goals as attacker. Buchanan, another attacker, had 14 goals last season.
The loss of Gerardi could surely hinder the team’s attacking power, as Gerardi had 57 more scoring attempts last year than the next player, sophomore center Jeff Greenwood. However, Greenwood was the second leading scorer last season with 42 goals and should fill the void.
Senior attacker Nick Korsgaden, who had 28 goals last year, will be ready to contribute toward improving last season’s 11-17 record.
It will take a tremendous effort for LBSU to reach the MPSF Tournament. With the Inland Empire Classic on Saturday and the Nor-Cal tournament the following weekend, LBSU cannot afford to lose ground in its efforts to reach the NCAA Tournament.
“We know how to play our game better,” Arroyo said. “We set the foundation last year. If we make the tourney [this year], we’ll be the most prepared.”
