Sports
Amador Valley Girls Water Polo Preview: Growing Pains
Dons return only 2 starters, already building toward 2011 season
School: Amador Valley
Sport: Girls water polo
Coach: Mark Docto, second season
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2009 Results: 12-12, NCS first round (lost to Miramonte, 8-6)
Key losses: Emma McGuiness, Rachel Miller (all-EBAL second-team selections)
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Key returners: Elle Surber (junior, 2 meter defense), Kayla Miller (senior, center forward)
Key matches: vs. Monte Vista, vs. Foothill
Team website: Click here
Quote: "We are in a tough league behind Monte Vista and San Ramon Valley, but I think we can compete for third place." – Mark Docto.
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Consistency has been key for the Amador Valley High girls water polo team in recent years. The Dons reached the North Coast Section playoffs in five of the past six seasons, including a first-round loss to mighty Miramonte in 2009.
But 2010 presents quite a challenge to the Dons if they hope to maintain their reputation as steady competitors.
Second-year head coach Mark Docto watched his two star seniors, Emma McGuiness and Rachel Miller, graduate after the 2009 campaign. This season, he returns only two starters.
"Because we have so many young players, we need to learn to be a team," Docto said. "If we improve every week this season, then by 2011, we can really do something."
That doesn't mean the Dons have given up on 2010. They are simply tempering expectations as members of the top-heavy East Bay Athletic League.
"We are in a tough league behind Monte Vista and San Ramon Valley, but I think we can compete for third place," Docto said.
Monte Vista and San Ramon Valley have combined to win the last nine NCS titles.
The Dons appear excited about a split of the 2010 NCS playoff bracket into two divisions. Amador will compete in Division 1 against schools with enrollment of 1,701 students or more.
"With the expansion, I'm pretty sure we're better than enough teams to make the playoffs," said junior co-captain Elle Surber.
As a returning starter and all-EBAL honorable mention selection in 2009, Surber is ready to help cultivate the talent of her young teammates.
"Our team is good now, but by next year we'll have a team with no weak links," Surber described.
Surber, a member of the USA Olympic Development Program, picked up water polo from her brother, Kyle, a senior captain for the Amador boys water polo team.
"I got burned out on swimming but my parents made me pick a new sport, so I chose water polo," Surber laughed. "My brother's friends talked him into it so I tried it too."
Surber's fellow team captain and returning starter is Kayla Miller. The junior center forward believes her key responsibility is to boost team chemistry.
"We went on an offseason retreat to bond," Miller explained. "We have to push these girls to reach the NCS playoffs again."
"Elle and Kayla are very strong players," Docto added. "I really need them to help grow our younger players."
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