The Ripon High boys’ water polo team had a very successful season and were able to make it to playoffs this year. The team faced many challenges due to a shortage of upperclassmen athletes.  However, Ty Wells, a senior, and Noah Esenwein, a junior, were able to help guide the team through the water polo season. 

“We did really well for being an inexperienced team.  We had a few freshman playing at the varsity level and going up against teams with a full senior lineup,” sophomore Micah West stated. “Because a lot of conditioning was implemented in our practices, that became our strong point.”

With such a young team, the boys surprised themselves this year when they ended the season undefeated in the Valley Oak League, winning 6 games. They were also able to make it all the way to semi-finals of the Division III sections but ended up losing with a score of 9-6.

Besides advancing to the second round of playoffs with such a young team, the boys were also surprised when they were able to face Sonora, their league rival.  

“We made a lot of mistakes and Sonora was able to pull ahead.  We were only down by one in the fourth quarter because the opposing team was tired,” West stated. “But after Noah Esenwein was [removed] from the game with a bloody eye, we had to put another freshman in his place up against a senior.”

Esenwein was later nominated the MVP of the league.

The players will be losing their only senior player, Ty Wells, after the season.  He will be attending the University of Arizona next fall for swimming.

“To win league and advance to the second round of playoffs was a pretty good way to end the season.  I’m going to miss this sport. It’s what I like to do,” Wells stated.

With the team mostly consisting of freshman and sophomores, they will be able to use the skills they learned this year to bring more successful seasons for the Ripon water polo team.

“We had a pretty good bunch of freshman and did very well with them,” Esenwein said. “We conditioned hard and were focused all year, which helped us win league and place very high in sections.  Overall, we did way better than expected, and it was one of our better groups.”

Although the team will be saying goodbye to their only senior, the players are looking forward to taking this year’s experiences and bringing them to the pool next year.

“Come out and watch boys water polo because next year will be a great year for them!” Wells stated.