Gig Harbor boys water polo takes fifth in state

The Gig Harbor High boys water polo team won a grand total of zero games in its inaugural season three years ago. This year, the team took fifth place at the state tournament at Curtis High School, finishing with a 19-3 record under coach Harrison Oak.

“It’s fantastic,” Oak said. “I’m extremely proud. They started only three years ago. It’s a monumental feat just to get to state.”

To do so, the Tides had to go against the North League in the regional tournament. Gig Harbor defeated perennially strong programs Newport and Roosevelt. In the state tournament, Gig Harbor lost to eventual-champion Curtis, beat Kentridge, lost to Puyallup and beat Roosevelt for fifth place.

The quick growth under Oak has been impressive, but it extends far beyond the fall season.

“I credit a lot of that to (swim coach and girls water polo coach) Mike Kelly and (swim assistant) Diana Litsch running solid boys swimming program,” Oak said.

Oak has also teamed up with Kelly to coach the Narrows Aquatic Association club water polo team, which has given the players a chance to play year-around. Over the summer, they took the club team down to Huntington Beach, California for Junior Olympics.

“We learned a lot down there,” Oak said. “It’s like the water polo mecca down there; kids start playing at age six.”

Oak said senior goalie Jake Underwood and senior forward Dawson Allen, who earned Honorable Mention at the state tournament, were two of the team’s biggest contributors this season.

“When it came down to it, they really stepped up when we needed them to,” Oak said.

Allen scored eight goals in the state tournament game against Kentridge, burning defenders with his speed and scoring ability. And Underwood was a steady presence in goal all season.

“With Underwood, we wouldn’t have come close to where we got in our season without him,” Oak said. “He saved so many goals in games we should’ve lost but didn’t because he played so well. We’re definitely going to miss them but we have a solid group of guys coming up.”

Oak hopes the program can build off this team’s success and continue to improve.

“Every year is a new year,” Oak said. “Just because we got fifth this year, doesn’t mean we’ll do it next year. We have to go back to the basics and fundamentals, guys have to do swim team and do club in the offseason. Our biggest issues were passing, turnovers, shooting and body positioning. We should make a solid go of it.”

This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 12:32 PM with the headline "Gig Harbor boys water polo takes fifth in state."