Jordan Wensley takes a shot during a men’s water polo tournament in Arizona. (Photo courtesy of William Tifft)
The University of Colorado men’s club water polo team is headed to the National Championships in Utah this weekend. The Buffs snuck past rival Utah in the conference semi-finals with an impressive 9-8 comeback victory and later beat Arizona State in the conference finals. The win produced Colorado’s first conference title in four years.
After finishing fourth in the conference standings in 2013, the squad boasts an impressive 9-1 record in this year’s regular season.
Junior Sean Helmer, a three-year veteran and president of the team, noted many contributing factors to the team’s success this year.
“We’ve had pretty much the same core guys for the past couple years, and we added some freshman, too,” he said. “We all played in high school so there’s a lot of experience on this team.”
Head coach Matt Reynolds places heavy emphasis on conditioning, which, according to freshman Stephen Tifft, put Colorado at a disadvantage during their first matches. Helmer reiterated this.
“We swim for at least 45 minutes every practice, and during pre-season, we spent two weeks doing a lot of dry land running, swimming 2,500 yards every day, and calisthenics.”
And for good reason—players must keep themselves afloat while focusing on the game and their positional responsibilities. There are four seven-minute quarters, and in this sport, seven minutes in the water can easily feel like seven hours. Players have to be in extreme physical condition.
Heading into the Nationals this week, Helmer explained what the team has to improve on.
The most important were “man-up scenarios (the equivalent of a powerplay in hockey) and our counter defense (penalty kill),” and continued conditioning made the list as well.
Senior captain Darin Weltsch, who is also in his third year on the water polo squad, made some remarks about the strong freshman class that has aided the team this year.
“I’m one of two or three graduating seniors this year, so having the younger guys is nice to have so that they can uphold our traditions,” he said.
Regarding their victories over rivals ASU and Utah, Weltsch said all it took was perseverance.
“[Even] after a lot of injuries and setbacks this year, we had a really good core group of guys with a solid water polo background that really wanted to win,” Weltsch said. “We wanted it more this year, and I’m happy with the outcome so far.”
Aside from the strenuous training and conditioning schedule, the team likes to keep things fun. How? By having a unique nickname system.
Helmer explained that “normal names are boring, and giving a nickname is like being welcomed into the team.”
For example, his nickname is Gorby, after Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union.
The first round of the National Championships in Utah begins at 4 p.m. Friday and will continue throughout the weekend. The Buffs will face Cornell University first.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Justin Guerriero at justinguerriero@hotmail.com.
