St. Joe’s water polo beat Lehigh University 12-6 on their senior night on Oct. 3.
The team has a record of 5-0 and leads the Mid-Atlantic Men Club Division B.
Senior Jake Smith said the team has gotten better and grown a lot since his freshman year. He swam in high school and wanted to do something different, so he decided to join the water polo team.
Smith’s first year, the team finished in fourth place at the championship tournament.
They finished the past two seasons in second place and have grown in size from around 15 to 30 members this season.
Senior Ricky Bauer said his freshman year the team had about three people in the stands and is impressed by how far the club has grown.
“As club athletes sometimes we feel as if we don’t get recognized for all of our hard work,” Bauer said. “Emotion wise I had a big smile on my face the whole night. It was a great experience.”
Senior Dan Trout said he is honored to be apart of the team and challenges his fellow seniors to remember the role they played to build the team to 30.
“I urged the team to look around and take in the sight of the filled stands and their teammates surrounding them,” Trout said.
Smith said one of his goals is to see the club become more well-known around campus, which he believes the team has done a good job of doing so far this year.
“The main goal I have for the team this year is to come in first place at championships, it would be the first time the club has ever done it,” Smith said.
Trout transferred from Wagner College, where he played water polo, after his first year and joined St. Joe’s team in his sophomore year.
“I feel blessed to have ended up at SJU,” Trout said. “Blessed to have been a captain of this team, and blessed for the family we have built that will survive long after we are gone.”
Trout describes how the team’s success has been predicted from hard work and contour developed.
“The culture around the team is to strive to be the best in the league but doing it in a way that brings dignity to our team and SJU,” Trout said.
Trout said he thinks the team is special, not only because of the talent in the pool, but the quality of the individuals. The team has a range of people who have never played or even swam before.
“The best part about our team is that everyone has a role to play in our championship aspirations,” Trout said. “Everyone is an equally important part of the team that makes this engine run.”
Trout said he will continue to be the best leader he can and believes in his team.
“We will go undefeated this year,” Trout said. “I told [the team] I would choose them over any other group in the league. I trust my teammates and they trust me.”
Smith said he is sad to leave but knows the underclassmen will be able to keep it going. He said the team bonds well with a strong work ethic.
“Outside of practice, I would say the team has a big family feel to it which helps out a lot,” Smith said. “Some of the teams we have played clearly don’t have that family feeling and it shows during the games.
