University Southern California Trojans
2012 USC Women's Water Polo Outlook
February 09, 2012 | Women's Water Polo
Feb. 9, 2012
Jovan Vavic does not sugar-coat things. He doesn't sandbag. He is known for telling it like it is. So when a coach who has won 10 national championships says something like, "We have enough talent to win a national championship," he means it.
And I quote: "We have enough talent to compete and win it. The game of water polo is really about not making too many mistakes. You don't need to to do anything incredible, just don't make mistakes. I think we have a team that will be good in that area."
There may actually be few doses of incredible in the mix, too. Sophomore goalie Flora Bolonyai is back in the water after helping her Hungarian National Team to a bronze medal at the European Championships to earn a spot in the coming Olympic Qualifying Tournament. Along the way, Bolonyai also picked up international honors as the Best Goalie of the Tournament at the Thetis Cup. What's more, Bolonyai has two more returning 2011 All-Americans alongside her for this 2012 campaign in senior Nadia Dan and junior Patricia Jancso, who combined for 83 goals last season for the Trojans.
"The strength of our team is that we have really good outside shooters and we have a very good goalie and we have experience with some of the juniors knowing the system," Vavic said. "I believe Flora is the best goalie in the country, and a goalie is the most important position in water polo."
USC is just one season removed from the 2010 national championship year, which eight current players experienced. Seniors Dan and Kara-Leigh Huse were sophomores in that campaign, and the rest are now juniors, giving Vavic a powerful base of knowledge to tap into as he constructs a a defensive-minded squad to get the Trojans back on top.
"Defense is the backbone of this program," Vavic said. "When we won the championship in 2010 we were No. 1 in the country. Last year we were No. 4. We're working hard to get back to being the top defensive team in the nation. Being a year older and with all these junior and seniors, we have a really strong group of girls that know the system."
Jancso and fellow junior Dominique Sardo were impact players as freshmen during that championship run. Constance Hiller, Nicolina McCall, Blair Moody and Chelsea Silvers also got plenty of pool time as freshmen that year and even more last season as sophomores. Now, that pack of upperclassmen are charged with putting that know-how and skill to good use this year.
"When Patricia, Dominique and Nadia play well, we are tough to beat," Vavic said. "They each bring something different to the team. Those three have the most experience and have played in a national championship game and that's what it takes. Along with McCall, Moody, Hiller and Silvers, they all understand the system and what needs to get done. This is a key season for all of those girls. We are going to depend on them heavily. I think they will play well, and that will be absolutely crucial to our success. Nadia and Kara-Leigh have really learned what needs to be done as team leaders. Our chemistry and the whole environment is good and very positive."
After 17 seasons as head coach of the USC men's and women's programs, Vavic may be a man of numbers -- accumulating nine Cutino Award winners along with his 10 national championships -- but he also knows the power of good chemistry on a team. This year, Vavic sees a cohesive group in his returning leaders and eager newcomers. Not to mention the depth of talent he has the luxury to work with this year. The returning players combined for 65 percent of USC's scoring last season.
Bolonyai was the goalie of record in every game last year. After graduating five 2010 All-Americans, USC finished 19-8 overall and 4-3 in MPSF play with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Tournament in 2011 -- a sub-par performance by Vavic's standards, but the Women of Troy did still extend their streak of NCAA appearances to eight straight while gathering up some key experience that Vavic plans to tap into this year. To aid that push for improvement, he has added a deep pool of new talent, with which he believes can go 12 to 14 players deep every game.
"We have a really good freshman class that we will rely on to contribute immediately," Vavic said, citing the strength of Eike Daube at two-meters, Michelle Caron and Savannah Fletcher as speedy drivers, and Monica Vavic as an insightful distributor with scoring ability. Add to that mix the quickness of transfer Olivia Cummins, and the Trojans are set up well for a youth movement toward success.
"Eike is a diamond in the rough," Vavic said. "She has lots of tools and will be excellent. She's fast and strong and aggressive. Shelly (Caron) is good defender and also fast. Monica also is a good defensive player who is not afraid to communicate. She brings defensive communication and is a scorer too. In terms of court vision I think Kaleigh Gilchrist and Monica are the best on our team. Olivia is another quick driver who is very fast and dangerous in counter. She will add to this group of fast players like Hiller, Silvers, Sardo and Caron.
"We really have two types of games this season," Vavic added. "We can play more of a power game with the bigger girls, and then a more fast-driving game. We can put girls in with speed and become more of a counterattack team."
Versatility will be an important counter punch for the Trojans, who can now follow up the more experienced defensive system on one end, anchored by Bolonyai and new goalie Morgan Vickers, with a blend of offensive strategies going the opposite direction. After all, Vavic also knows he can rely on the sophomore savvy of Gilchrist, Colleen O'Donnell and Madeline Rosenthal, who combined for 35 goals as freshmen. O'Donnell and Rosenthal got extra experience as well as members of the U.S. Junior National Team, along with Sardo, in the fall at the FINA Junior World Championships. Jennifer Stiefel also was there, playing for Germany, as well as Bolonyai, who won silver with Team Hungary.
"Maddy, Kaleigh and Colleen are playing really tough and are hungry to win," Vavic said. "They played a lot of minutes last year, too."
USC's balance of expansive experience along the versatility of size and speed will keep opponents guessing this season. A rotation of talent at the two-meter slot deepens the Trojans' attack even further.
"That will become a strength for us because we have more than one person that can set," Vavic said of his exciting blend of depth taking shape this year. "That increases our flexibility, and really gives us a good shot at winning another championship."
