DEL MAR — Two youth teams with the Del Mar Water Polo Club took home gold medals in their respective age groups at the 2024 Water Polo Junior Olympics from July 20-23 at Stanford University in Palo Alto.
It was an exciting week for the club. The 14-and-under boys team celebrated its third consecutive national championship title at the Junior Olympics in the Platinum Championship Division tournament, and the co-ed 10-and-under team took home their first-ever championship title.
Del Mar 14U Blue won all seven games of the tournament, including a 19-13 victory over Newport Beach Water Polo in the championship match.
“We had control over most of the game, and we knew what we had to do to win and finish the job,” said team MVP Grayson Taylor, 14.
Coach Miles Wilson said the young players are well-qualified for the title and have worked extremely hard over the past year.
“While the overall goal all year was to win the Junior Olympics, it is important to recognize that we set smaller attainable goals along the way to deal with this intense competition. Many of the goals focused on development in skill, conditioning and building the mental strength required to create the 15 best 14-and-under water polo athletes in the country,” Wilson said.
For several 14U team members, this win marks their fourth consecutive championship title, as they were also part of the championship 12U team in the past. One of these players is 14-year-old Maximus Bruhn.
“Our entire community of friends and family, Coach Miles and the other coaches at our Club supported all of us in winning this tournament. Their support contributed to our overall success. Each person supporting us played a significant role for us to win the gold medal, and winning another National Title means a lot to each of us,” said Bruhn.
In addition, Del Mar 10U Blue, coached by Brendan Patterson, continued its undefeated streak this season with a win at the Junior Olympics Platinum Division Championship.
Patterson said the co-ed 10U team is a special group of dedicated players that often competes against older age groups. Winning the championship was the cherry on top of an ice cream sundae of a season, he said.
“I think it takes a unique group of 8, 9 and 10-year-olds to take on that challenge,” he said. “That kind of mindset really was apparent in this group and I think made them special — They just went and delivered and played, and there was no question they were coming out on top.”
However, the Del Mar Water Polo Club didn’t leave the Junior Olympics with only gold medals. The boys’ 16U team and 10U Silver team both took home silver medals from the National Championships.
Conner Virjee, a four-time NCAA champion at USC, will take the helm as the 14U head coach at the club in the fall. Del Mar Water Polo Club offers programs for youth as young as 5 years old and as old as 18, with boys, girls and co-ed teams. Practices are held at Cathedral Catholic High School Pool. For more information, visit delmarwaterpoloclub.com.
