Babes, bikinis and beaches are only a few of the things that come to mind at the mention of California, but for the men's water polo team, the upcoming trip to the Golden State will be full of anything but rest and relaxation.
Princeton leaves for the West Coast on Thursday for its annual four-game trip. Though the Tigers (11-1 overall) have enjoyed a fantastic season thus far, it will be interesting to see how their style and level of play match up against their California counterparts.
"I think the style is a little different," senior two-meter co-captain Dan McKenna said. "I think it's not as rough. There's definitely a big water polo culture out there."
Not just big — think huge. Over half of Princeton's bench hails from California, as do the top seven ranked teams in the nation according to the weekly national poll on SwimInfo.com.
The Tigers, ranked No. 11, play No. 4 UC-Berkeley (9-3) on Friday for what will be the most challenging game of the trip.
"The toughest test by far will be Cal," senior two-meter defenseman and co-captain D.J. Halliday said. "Both myself and [senior driver] Danny Holligan grew up right next to Cal. I know a lot of their players from high school."
Berkeley is riding high as a result of its latest victories over the top two teams in the Pac-10, the University of Southern California and Stanford. It benefits from a deep bench, which provides flexibility and many talented subs.
Berkeley's main offensive threat is top-scoring senior Attila Banhidy, who has put away 23 goals in 10 games. Guarding the net for the Bears will be senior Tim Kates, whose saves regularly tally into the high teens.
The Tigers have a few aces of their own, including, but not limited to, sophomore driver John Stover, junior goalie Pete Sabbatini and McKenna, all of whom are capable of causing the Bears considerable trouble.
"They are beatable," freshman driver Chris Kelsch said, "but we're going to have to bring our A-game for sure." The next day Princeton will face University of the Pacific (3-8) for what should be a win. Pacific, currently unranked, has been struggling through the season. The Tigers should be able to seize the win by shutting down Pacific's top two reliable scorers.
Sunday morning the Tigers will take on UC-Davis. The Aggies, currently ranked No. 20, have had a tepid season thus far with a 9-6 overall record and the Tigers, brought down a bit from last week's loss to St. Francis, should be able to earn a win if they stay focused.
Fast starts
"We know we can't go out there and play flat like we did last Thursday [against St. Francis]," Halliday said.
Indeed, getting and holding an early lead will also be key for Sunday afternoon's game against Air Force. The Falcons, ranked No. 14, match up well with the Tigers in terms of skill. With a 7-1 record in conference play, Air Force has the bench and the players to make this an interesting match.
In terms of strategy, Princeton will continue with the winning combo that has been a smashing success thus far — speed and a solid defense.
"We're definitely going to try and utilize our counterattack because we're a pretty fast team this year," Kelsch said.
"We've got the best defense on the East Coast," Halliday added, "and with the offensive threats we have in John Stover and Dan McKenna, the goals should come."
Ready to attack
Princeton will go into the weekend refreshed and ready to play, having had the better part of a week to rest."The team is doing great," head coach Luis Nicolao said.
The success of the weekend for the Tigers won't be determined by score, but by performance.
"I think for us to have a successful weekend is to have four really good games of mistake-free water polo," McKenna said. "If we come and play as team and learn something it'll be a success."
Despite the high percentage of Californians among Princeton's ranks, the team's focus will be solely on the games.
"I don't think there will be any interesting side trips while we're out there," Halliday said. "I'm just hoping the weather is nice and I can get my tan back."
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