Local Water Polo Team Wins Gold & 2 MVP Titles @ Nat'l Event

LOCAL WATER POLO TEAM WINS GOLD AT US CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS

LOS ANGELES, CA --In a grueling three-day battle in San Diego last weekend, the 16 and under aged water polo team from Los Angeles Premier Water Polo Club, took home the Gold Medal at 2017 US Club Championships.

Stand out performances from three Honor Roll student-athletes were: Attacker Pierce Maloney, a rising Junior at Harvard-Westlake, who scored six goals in the gold medal game; Goalkeeper Nolan Krutonog, a rising Sophomore at Harvard-Westlake and a 2017 USA National Cadet Team player, who made 58 saves in six games and was named All-Tournament Goalie MVP; Utility driver Alexandru Bucur, a rising Junior at Harvard-Westlake, who took home the coveted All Tournament MVP with 18 goals and 13 assists over the long weekend.

Head Coach Brian Flacks also played most of his athletes in the 18 and under bracket during the weekend with certain athletes running back and forth between pools, often half way between games. “We work the kids hard. We put them in 18s games so they learn how much more they have to work. Then they come back from defeat and use what they learned in their own age group. We are super proud of them but they know they have so much more to learn.”

The roster also included Harvard-Westlake student-athletes (rising Sophomores): George Caras; Gage Franchina; Chris Kim; Mot Stothart; Ryan Neapole; Thijmen Oerlemans; Cristian Pang; Ethan Shipman; and (rising Freshman) Spencer Mendelsohn. Club teammates also included rising Sophomores from other schools: George Avakian, a 2017 USA National Cadet Team player; Will Coleman; Adam Dow; Oliver Grant; and Miles Karlin.

“It was pretty funny going back and forth between pools. Our plan was we got a lead going in a 16s game and then at half-time grabbed a bagel and a towel and ran across the parking lot in our speedos, hopped in the coach’s car, and got to the 18s game,” laughed MVP Alexandru Bucur. “If someone doesn’t know water polo,” adds Goalie MVP Nolan Krutonog, “I can only imagine what they might be thinking seeing three soaking wet, bagel-eating guys running on the street. It was exhausting, but will make us better players in the end.”

Los Angeles Premier Water Polo Club accepts girls and boys grades 3-8 and older who can swim one pool length. They offer a one-week free trial. According to the National Federation of High Schools, Water Polo is the fastest growing sport in the USA. L.A. Premier athletes train at the world-class facility at Harvard-Westlake. Since 2012, L.A. Premier athletes have received acceptances and/or scholarships at: Stanford; Harvard; Princeton; UCLA; Brown; Columbia University; Cornell; MIT; CAL; UC Davis, to name a few. L.A. Premier athletes and coaches play and train on the current Olympic Team, USA National Team and are NCAA Champions.