Puyallup High water polo takes fourth after strong finish

The Puyallup High boys water polo team took fourth place at the state tournament over the weekend after the Vikings progressed a great deal from last season.

Before the boys headed to Curtis High on Thursday to open the state tournament with a match against Roosevelt High, the Vikings took the time to reflect on their season, and how much the roster came together to go so far.

“I feel we communicated a lot more than last year,” Christian Braddock said. “We made an emphasis on communicating to play better together … we can’t just rely on one guy.”

That one guy Braddock was talking about was Austin Stump, whose knack for pitching for the baseball team came into play consistently during the season as he helped Puyallup win matches in the pool.

“There’s definitely a lot more expectations this year (and), it’s going to be tough living up to the expectations that we built this entire season,” Stump said.

Even though Puyallup has been to state the last three years, this season’s expectations couldn’t be much higher after a 13-3 regular season in a tough league.

Last season, Puyallup coach Travis Braddock admitted that his team was a work in progress, and that the Metro League teams were just too good to overcome. His understanding of how the cycle of water polo works gave him hope this year.

“But there are always teams who will be good,” he admitted. “Curtis always has a good team … but we feel confident heading in.”

“Between me and Christian as the captains, there’s been a lot more encouragement to play club outside of high school (polo),” Kyle Howgate said. “That’s what makes the difference between the really good teams … that takes the step into the next level.”

And reaching that next level has brought confidence to the Puyallup squad.

That confidence paid off big time as Puyallup handled Roosevelt, 14-7, in the opening round behind Stump’s five goals and goalie Jake Kinne’s 13 saves. Thursday’s win not only gave the Vikings momentum going forward, but it demonstrated the one theme these players have taken to the pool each match: Keep having fun despite playing in one of the toughest leagues in state.

“This season has been a lot of fun to get to know the guys a lot better,” Beau Pasquier said. “Part of the reasons (for our success) is that we got put in a region where a lot of the state’s best teams are. We made his based on placement in a good bracket.”

Puyallup wasn’t so lucky facing defending state champions Bellevue in round two, as the Wolverines took care of the Vikings, 16-6, putting Puyallup in single elimination.

Yet the Vikings wouldn’t allow that one slip-up to get the better of them, as they learned from the season that these games happen.

“I think we have been more focused,” Howgate said. “We don’t try to look past what’s in front of us.”

That evolution of the team’s mindset paid off the rest of the state tournament as Puyallup ran through the rest of their competition. The Vikings handled Gig Harbor, 9-2, in their consolation semifinals match, before edging Mercer Island, 14-13, to finish up in fourth place.

A year ago, Travis Braddock said the water polo world is cyclical. This year the pendulum swung toward the Vikings side of the pool, and Puyallup is hoping it stays there for a long time.

“We’re want to leave here knowing that Puyallup water polo is a strong program,” Christian Braddock said. “I feel this team can continue to be a good team.”

This story was originally published November 16, 2015 at 3:58 PM with the headline "Puyallup High water polo takes fourth after strong finish."