Last season was a historic one for Evanston girls water polo. The Wildkits finished with a record of 29-3-1 and made it all the way to the state finals before losing a heartbreaker to Stevenson.
“It was the best season in ETHS water polo history,” stated Head Coach Maggie Hatcher.
Coming into this year, the Kits are looking to have another successful season. However, they must be careful not to get stuck in the past and focus on the team at hand.
“The big focus for this year is to take all that momentum and all of the opportunities we had to be successful, but remembering that this team is this team and not looking backward,” said Hatcher.
While Evanston lost some key players from last season, most of the core is returning. The Kits are bringing back a large senior class led by standouts Grace Cummins and Maya Vincent while also having some younger contributors, such as sophomore Maggie Brennan.
The team has been putting in the work as well. A new club program has kept players fresh and ready to go for the grind of the high school season.
“The league was really competitive, but we got fourth, which was pretty good,” mentioned Cummins.
You can’t have a winning team without a good culture in the locker room, and team culture was a major strength for the Wildkits last season. With most of the team returning this year, the locker room should not be an issue.
“It was better than anything I’ve ever experienced before,” stated Brennan about the team culture.
It’s not going to be easy for the Kits to return to State. Along with the typical test of the New Trier rivalry, Evanston has a state final rematch set up with Stevenson, which will be a massive challenge but also a chance for revenge for the team.
“I’m looking forward to playing Stevenson because that’s who we lost to at State, and playing them is always a really intense game,” said Brennan.
The Kits will face challenges this season, as all teams do, but if they stay focused on their goals and continue building on last year’s success, they have a strong chance of returning to State.
“It’s going to be a lot of work. It’s going to take a commitment from everyone, but our success is in our hands and in our control,” explained Hatcher.
The Wildkits will open the season on March 12th at Libertyville, before the home opener on March 20th against New Trier.
