Looking For Holes in Blodgett Pool

Last fall, on October 4, the Harvard men's water polo team pulled off a semi-miraculous 12-6 victory over Brown.

The Bruins in question were only Brown's "B" squad, but it was still a benchmark victory for the Crimson aquadudes.

Granted, few people mistake Providence, R.I., for California. Nonetheless, the Bruins have consistently proven themselves capable of playing up to the high standards of West Coast water polo. And in six years of varsity play, the Crimson had never succeeded in dunking its counterpart from Brown.

Leading the 1985 Crimson squad--which closed out the season with a 17-8 ledger--were Tri-Captains Rob Strauss, Brian Johnston and Jon Sandler.

Leading this year's unit will be a trio of juniors--Fred Scherrer, Bill Wolff and Ben Elizondo. Toss in Wade Stokes and goalie Don Benson, both juniors and returning starters, and second-year Coach Chris Hafferty can claim a nucleus of proven talent.

What Hafferty may not have, however, is the spark to make that core produce.

"We lost three of our top four scorers last year, guys who put the ball in the net," Hafferty says. "The backbone of the team is still intact, but the arms are gone."

Scherrer was the Crimson's second-leading scorer (behind Strauss) last year, and Elizondo and Stokes ranked one-two in steals, but the absence of experienced hole-men could hurt.

"Two of our seniors were hole-setters, the most important offensive position," Hafferty says. "We like to play with three holes, and we only have one coming back [Wolff]."

The hole is responsible for positioning himself directly in front of the opposing goalie, setting up the offense and passing the ball to field players stationed around him. Hafferty will be looking to Wolff and senior Jim Kornish--a field player last season--to take charge at hole.

Benson, who earned second team All-New England honors last year, is set for his second full year in the net. Other returnees at field include sophomores Joe Kaufman and Steve Dodge, and junior Pete Kaiser.

Incoming freshmen Nick Gianuzzi, John Rabin and Fuad Ombargi plan to join the squad this week, while upperclassmen Nicholas Branca, Kyle Enright, Andy Freed, Eric Bentley, David Mandell and Andy Goldfarb--none of whom played last season--will also shoot to make the team during the preseason practice.

"I haven't seen the freshmen yet, but seeing as we have only nine people back and we like to travel with a squad of 18 we have nine slots to fill," Hafferty says. "The freshmen have experience, but just how good they are we'll be seeing."

And seeing quickly.

Harvard's season opens on September 20 at Navy with the Eastern League Tournament. The following weekend, the Crimson goes up against the best of the West--including defending NCAA champion Stanford, 1984 champ UCal-Berkeley, and nationally third-ranked Pepperdine--at the Brown Invitational tourney.

With only two home tournaments (October 3-4 and 24-25), Harvard won't have much in the way of home-pool advantage this season.

But for Hafferty, the outlook is good--especially after a year which saw the Crimson metamorphosize from a mediocre squad (14-11 in '84) into one capable of knocking off the Bruins.

"Reflecting on last year, the captains and the team showed exceptional openness to me as a new coach, the third in three years," Hafferty says. "They couldn't have been more supportive--it was the most enjoyable experience of my coaching career, and I expect the same from this year's team."