On Nov. 11, the PHS boy’s water polo team claimed the North Coast Section (NCS) Division 2 championship title with a 10-8 win against Alameda High School.
This is the first time in history that the boy’s water polo team has won NCS.
“This is the first time any Piedmont team has made the finals. It’s the first time any Alameda County team has won,” varsity head coach John Savage said.
Senior and co-captain George Stein said that they worked hard for this win, practicing five times a week in addition to having film and weight room sessions.
“We worked as a team, physically and mentally, to build chemistry [and learn] what each player needs to succeed,” Stein said.
In the last two years, the team lost to Marin Academy in the NCS semifinals. This year, however, they beat Marin Academy 13-9 to advance to the finals, according to MaxPreps.
“I truly believe that it was destiny this year after the losses we’ve taken the past two years in the semifinals against Marin Academy. We wanted it so bad,” Stein said.
This year the team has eight seniors on their roster, allowing him to credit their wins to their dedication and senior leadership, Savage said.
“This is our biggest senior class in a long time, maybe ever, so it’s a testament to them for putting in four years of work,” Savage said.
Senior and co-captain Declain Linnane scored 6 goals in the game against Alameda, earning him a nomination for Mercury News’ Athlete of the Week.
“My teammates did a great job of getting me open looks and I just focused on putting the ball into the back of the net,” Linnane said.
Piedmont’s NCS win also earned them a spot in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) tournament.
