University Southern California Trojans
2008 USC Men's Water Polo Season Outlook
September 15, 2008 | Men's Water Polo
Sept. 15, 2008
After 13 years of head coaching, Jovan Vavic has a solid mental checklist of the items necessary to build a championship team. As far as tangibles go, all positions are well stocked. Like three-players-deep-at-every-spot covered. And when it comes to the intangibles - such as experience and leadership - the Trojans are fully covered up in that department.
Vavic himself rattles off the 2008 Trojan checklist:
"We have everything that we need to have to have a great season. I feel that every position is covered, from two-meter offense to two-meter defense, to the left side of the pool and to the right side. We have the speed and the size and the shooters and the experience this year. I think we also have the determination. Obviously, we also have to stay healthy. We have some younger guys stepping up as leaders and we have great players returning as leaders."
The departure of three All-Americans - including three-timers Tommy Corcoran and Adam Shilling - did make a dent, but Vavic has been quick to pound it out. Having three returning All-Americans will help, especially when they are joined by five other returners who know nothing else but reaching that NCAA championship game.
USC has made three straight trips to the NCAA final. In 2005 the Trojans captured the crown. In 2006 and 2007, the Trojans powered right back to the title matches but came up just short. For 2008, all Trojan eyes are glued to the path to bringing another national championship back to Troy.
"We know what it takes," Vavic said of making another run to the final. "To win 19 or 20 games a year is very tough and that's what it takes. I hope we get there again and our experience will carry us over."
Seniors Arjan Ligtenberg and Jovan Vranes have been in the pool for the past three national championship games. Juniors Anthony Artukovich, J.W. Krumpholz, Justin Rappel, Matt Sagehorn, Nico Sardo and Jordan Thompson have done it twice in their two seasons at Troy. Add in the powerful experience that Krumpholz brings in as a 2008 Olympic silver medalist, and there is no doubt of the Trojans' talented leadership in the water for 2008.
"Our juniors really are the leaders of this team, playing wise. This is their turn. In my opinion in any championship team, you need more than one or two leaders and they are all leaders in their own way. They have a great opportunity. They know what it means and how difficult it is to get there."
Helping to lead the Trojan offense to its 19-3 mark last season was a balanced scoring attack. Leading scorers Matt Sagehorn and Shea Buckner are both back as USC's top sharpshooters, having combined for 62 goals last season as sophomores. USC's No. 3 scorer in 2007, three-time All-American Tommy Corcoran, has graduated, taking with him a dominating presence at two meters. But the Trojans continue to reload.
"Tommy is a big loss," Vavic said. "The fact that J.W. went to the Olympics is really going to help us and help J.W. take over at that two-meter position. And in addition to J.W., Arjan and Jordan both play that position really well, and our young player Kevin May is another freshman two-meter player."
Outside of set, USC's balance and depth reigns supreme as well. Experience and maturity are exemplified in Sagehorn and Buckner, along with their fellow juniors Artukovich, Rappel and Sardo. Senior Vranes still wields one of the hardest shots in the game, and USC's offensive onslaught is bolstered further by sophomores Devon Borisoff and Kyle Sterling and newcomers Peter Kurzeka, Cem Carak, Elliott Samuels and Matthew Burton. All told, USC returns 70 percent of its scoring from last season.
"We are very similar to last year's team in the sense that we're very deep and can play 14 to 15 guys in any game" Vavic said. "We've been able to recruit the top players in the nation, and I feel they are ready to play. I want them to compete with our returning players for playing time. I want this to be a competitive year in training. You can't relax. I think are there deep in every position."
As ferocious and deep as USC's offensive firepower has been, the Trojans' staple for years now has been on the defensive end. USC has led the nation defensively in the past three seasons, and that foundation looks equally solid once again. Granted, the graduation of three-time All-American goalie Adam Shilling left a gaping hole in the cage for the Trojans. A finalist for the Peter J. Cutino Award after his senior season, Shilling left Troy as USC's No. 6 all-time leader in career saves. But if you think the goalie position isn't somewhere near the top of Vavic's checklist, think again.
Joel Dennerley joins the Trojan roster as a freshman goalie with experience on the Australian Junior National Team. Senior Ben Weil has served as a capable backup to Shilling, and the goalie corps continues to run deep with Will Cherashore, Tyler McManigal and Brett Giery in the cage. In front of that last line of defense, the Trojan gameplan is equally stingy, with a set of smart and sizable defenders prepped to clamp down on opposing offenses. Here comes another Vavic checklist:
"Adam is a huge loss, but Joel is a perfect fit. We want to be the best defensive team in the nation. That's something Joel will help us with and the big guys, Arjan and Jovan and Shea. We have fast guys that can protect our cage in the counterattack, and we have guys that can defend drives. For our 5-on-6 defense I think we have good shot blockers and have excellent goalies. I think defense is going to be our weapon again. That's our goal."
