Delta College’s men’s water polo team finished fourth in the William Anttila Invitational Sept. 12-13, going 0-2-1 in the two-day tournament at Delta. The Mustangs fell to conference rival Diablo Valley College 15-3 in Saturday’s third-place game Sept. 13, concluding a weekend that also saw them lose to San Mateo 14-7 and tied Merced 11-11 in pool play.
“It’s a first chance for NorCal teams to really get good competition between Coast Conference and Big 8 Conference opponents,” Maroney said. “So we really get to see what the season’s going to lay out for us.”
With freshmen from places like Indonesia and Virginia Beach, Delta College’s men’s water polo team finished fourth in the two-day William Anttila Invitational at Delta.
“With so many true freshmen, we’re making a ton of mistakes,” said Head Coach Michael Maroney. “Not all of our freshmen were here in town training together, so this tournament was really our first time working as a team.”
The tournament honors William Anttila, who founded the Delta Mustangs USA Water Polo Club in 1952, which was the 39th club ever established. With more than 30,000 clubs now in existence, Anttila’s legacy as the “godfather of Central Valley water polo,” said Maroney, remains strong throughout the region.
“So many of the referees out here either played for Coach Anttila or were coached by someone who played for Coach Anttila,” Maroney said. “There’s just a great deal of admiration in the Stockton community for William and his family.”
Utility player Mateo McKay acknowledged the team’s growing pains while emphasizing its commitment to improvement.
“We need to get everybody working as hard as possible in practice and just get our effort level up to 100 percent,” McKay said. “We just need to come in with a work-hard, 24/7, 100 percent of the time mentality.”
Goalkeeper Joe Gabbard said building chemistry remains the team’s main focus. The players plan to organize a slow-pitch softball league and other activities to strengthen relationships beyond the practice field.
“Getting to know each other better outside the pool helps chemistry in the water,” McKay said.
Maroney saw the weekend as a foundation for growth, giving his freshmen necessary game experience and a clearer picture of college-level competition.
“Just learning how we need to adapt off of our mistakes and how to capitalize on our strengths,” Maroney said. “And there’s a ton of them. So we’re really excited about going forward this season.”
The Mustangs will compete at Diablo Valley College on Sept. 19-20 as they continue preparing for future conference games to advance to the playoffs this season.
