Chargers bear down in race for Marmonte title





By Steve Ames
Special to the Acorn

Agoura High School’s water polo team has more than one goal this season.


One is obvious, the one at the end of the pool where the team literally scores it goals. The other will be to win this season’s Marmonte League title or at least get a berth in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) playoffs.


"Our senior leadership has been very impressive," said head coach Dustin Litvak, whose team began the week 17-4 overall and 6-1 in league. "We only have three seniors on the team and two of them start, (2-meter defense) Andrew Jung and (driver) Jeff Hassan. They’ve been a big part of the reason these guys have been playing so well most of the time."


While a game last week against the Moorpark Musketeers was won by Agoura, 9-6, in Moorpark’s new pool, it wasn’t the best example of the Chargers this season.


"Sometimes the kids go up a little bit and they start to get complacent and get lazy and it definitely showed. Because of the fact that we don’t really have any super stars on this team, they play extremely well together as a unit," Litvak said. "I think that’s due very much in part to the senior leadership we’ve had this year."


Agoura was the winner in two other recent games beating the host Ventura Cougars of the Channel League, 15-12, and at home stopping the Calabasas Coyotes, 14-6, in a league game.


In the Ventura game, junior utility Nick Rimmele scored five goals, junior 2-meter offensive player Brian Gross added three more and junior utility Danny Polyakov put two goals in for the Chargers and also made five assists.


Polyakov led Agoura with five goals, four steals and three assists as Calabasas absorbed the defeat. In addition, Gross and Rimmele scored three goals apiece and freshman goalie Ryan Paris made 19 saves and had four steals.


On Monday this week the Chargers played the Newbury Park Panthers and on Wednesday the Chargers met first place team the league first place Royal Highlanders. Tomorrow the opponent will be the host Westlake Warriors at 3:15 p.m.


In addition Hassan, Jung, Rimmele, Goss, Polyakov and Paris, the Chargers are contending for a playoff berth because of senior utility Nathan Hadar, junior drivers Cameron Milani and Jay Yang, and junior goalie Daniel Rozzen. Additional Agoura players are sophomores 2-meter guard River Jordan, driver Justin Kovanis, 2-meter defensive player Alex Thompson and freshman driver Matt Carlson.


Litvak said that while he anticipates the playoffs will provide tough opposition, the Marmonte League teams are challenging enough for now.


"Every day seems like you (have to) come to play," he said. "Anybody can beat anybody. Our only (league) loss has been to Royal. They’re definitely the team to beat. They’re at the head of the pack, but I think they’re beatable.


"I think everybody is beatable on any given day. I think that’s the scary part of our league this year. You can’t really take any team for granted."



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