How Sweet It Is!
PRINCETON, N.J. Sometimes it’s hard to live in the moment, to appreciate and be grateful for what’s happened—and not fret about what’s been. Sitting in the stands of DeNunzio Pool last Saturday afternoon as the team I root for scored a major—and unexpected—win was one of those times.
As the St. Francis Brooklyn men’s water polo team were closing out an 11-10 win over favored Harvard in the semifinals of the 2021 Northeast Water Polo Conference Championship, I had the feeling of being at ease after a long, anxious period. I also felt satisfied; not hungry for the next event (or, in this case, the NWPC final which the Terriers qualified for the first time since the conference was formed in 2016).
Given an exciting and unexpected finish, whatever would occur the next day—spoiler alert, the Terriers lost to Princeton—didn’t matter. That’s because what happened at DiNunzio against the Crimson was both impressive and immensely gratifying. Plus, it’s nice when the little guy—that would be St. Francis—gets to knock down Goliath. Again.
How much difference a few weeks makes
To suggest that St. Francis was able to take Harvard by surprise in a NWPC semifinal—a tournament where the Crimson have advanced to the final every single year since 2016—is to underestimate how talented the Terriers are. This is not to say SFC hasn’t overcome many obstacles to compete against the East’s best—Brown, Princeton and most of all, Harvard.
A long time East Coast doormat, the Crimson have been transformed under Head Coach Ted Minnis into a colossus, racking up 55 wins against seven losses in 2019 and 2021. (Like the Terriers, the Crimson did not compete in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic).
When St. Francis beat Harvard 12-10 on October 2 in Brooklyn Heights, it appeared that despite many obstacles—a pool that was not well-maintained during the COVID break, the tragic death in August of Boris Posavec the team’s assistant coach, the announced move from the school’s longtime home to an urban campus—one of the East’s stronger programs was back on its feet.
[The Terriers of St. Francis Brooklyn Are Back!]
A new coach; Ilija Duretic assumed the head man’s job last August, and 13 newcomers—freshmen as well as sophomores because the Terriers sat out last season of play—made this a season like no other. And the win against a long-time rival signaled good times ahead.
Some of the best players in SFC men’s water polo history (from left): Viktor Klauzer, Lazar Komadinic, Nikita Prokhin, Marko Gencic, Bosko Stankovic and Balint Toth
Then the Brooklynites traveled to Harvard’s Blodgett Pool at the end of October and lost by 15 goals—one of the program’s worst losses ever to an East Coast opponent. When that defeat was followed the next day by a 14-13 overtime loss at NWPC rival Brown, it appeared a once-promising campaign was about to unravel. The Terriers then saved their season with a stunning 9-7 win over host Princeton on November 6, and followed with an impressive 13-7 decision in the Bronx against Fordham on November 12.
[Not Only Fair Weather Fans Are Rewarded]
When both Harvard and SFC won a week ago Friday, the first day of the NWPC Championship, it set up a rubber match between two teams that don’t like each other—SFC captain Dominick Hevesi earned a brutality ejection in the 20-5 loss—and were driving for the same prize: a return to NCAAs. Harvard hasn’t been since 2019; St. Francis since 2013.
A fast start devolves into a battle of attrition
Perhaps feeling overconfident due to their big win on October 30th—or maybe because of SFC’s desire not to be embarrassed—the Crimson quickly found themselves in a 3-0 hole. By the end of the first period they had knotted things up at three on a rebounded penalty shot by Harvard’s Owen Hale. Then came one of the signs this was a Terrier kind of day.
On the ensuing possession an inside scoring attempt by SFC was blocked by Harvard goalie Noah Hodge. The rebound came right to Hevesi who deftly flicked it past Hodge just as the buzzer sounded to end the period. It was a bang-bang play, the kind you have to see to believe—and one only executed by a very skilled player.
With a pair of goals on Saturday as well as some slick assists, Hevesi, the Terriers’ captain and leading scorer, is all that and more. He releases the ball effortlessly and there must be a bit of spin on his shot because he leaves goalies flailing as the ball hits the back of the net.
SFC expanded their lead to three again late in the second period but Hale converted another penalty attempt at the end of the second to make it 8-6.
A second half stall
The third period settled into a defensive struggle as neither team scored in the first six minutes. But there was a second indication that this was the Terrier’s game. Two minutes into the period, Djordje Stoiljkovic, the SFC goalie, was whistled for an exclusion. Apparently, the referee felt he had deliberately pushed the ball out of bounds. For 20 long seconds the SFC defense had to guard their goal down a goalie. And they did; inexplicably Harvard did not shoot until a few seconds remained in the penalty, allowing the Terriers to hold the Crimson at bay until Stoiljkovic returned to his cage.
Author in SFC gear at Princeton
It wasn't until Harvard’s Mat Stothart scored at the 2:22 mark that a goal was registered in the frame. In the stands, just as Terrier fans began to fret about a one goal lead. Baptiste Oliveri calmed their fears. With a defender on him he reached around and shot the ball past Hodge with his back on the water. It was a spectacular play and one that reassured the faithful—and sustained us even when Harvard’s Gabe Putnam scored with a minute left in the period. Lefty Paul Armingol answered with a nifty skip shot to push the SFC advantage back to two as the period ended.
Whoever makes the least mistakes is the winner
Entering the final period, there were many reasons to think the Terriers couldn’t hold on—mainly because they were blitzed by this very same Harvard side three weeks before. After keeping the Crimson at bay for much of the second half, Stoiljkovic and the SFC defense sagged. A goal at the beginning of the period by Hale and one towards the end by Sasha Bucur left the two teams tied at 10 with two minutes to play.
That set the stage for heroics by St. Francis’ Adonis Vlassis. He had stolen a goal—literally—in the first period, when he stepped in front a clearing pass to Hodge and hammered home a goal. The sophomore from Greece had also scored in the second with a deft lob over the Harvard goalie’s outstretched hand.
Vlassis completed his hat trick with 42 seconds remaining as his shot handcuffed Hodge and barely slipped into the goal. The Crimson trailed by one but had a full clock to force overtime. They never got the chance; SFC’s Armingol came up with a steal from Harvard’s Kaleb Archer with 21 seconds remaining. There was bedlam in the water and the stands as the Terriers celebrated a most unlikely victory.
For this fan, the match contained everything I could ever want. It was a tough, grinding back and forth affair that saw my team get out in front and never trail. Brilliant individual play, especially in front of Hodge, and a determination from the SFC defenders made this an entirely satisfying win.
Whatever would happen in the future didn’t matter. For one hour everything was right in the world, and that’s a good thing.