(09/18/12) -- REVISED
JV and Novice *WILL* have practice on Friday after school (from 3:30 - 5:00pm)
I'd like to welcome Ryan Dunlap to our program as a new volunteer coach. Ryan graduated from WHS in 2010, and was a standout goalie for the wildcats. He will be helping me coach the younger guys during the first-year practices, and will focus on training the goalies on all teams. WELCOME RYAN!!!!
This week suit orders and t-shirt orders will go out -- thank you to everyone who got their checks in on time!
We will be having our next Team Dinner at Mountain Mike's Pizza in Redwood City on Wednesday, September 19th at 7:30pm - All players and parents are welcome. Please mention "Woodside water polo" when you order so they can hold the receipt for me to collect at the end of the night.
Lastly, the varsity squad will have a tournament this week hosted at Evergreen Valley High School in San Jose. Yes, it's pretty far, but we were able to get into it late and get some more games, so let's be excited!
GAME TIMES ARE: NO GAMES FRIDAY! Be there 30 minutes before gametime!
- Saturday 9:10am -- Game 1 vs. Lincoln (be there by 8:30am)
- Saturday 10:50am (if we win) or 12:30pm (if we lose) -- Game 2 vs. ?
- Saturday Game 3 will be sometime between 3:00pm and 6:00pm
Here are this week's events:
Monday (09/17) : First-Year practice 4:00 - 5:00 pm ; Varsity practice 5:00 - 6:00 pm
Tuesday (09/18) : NO PRACTICES (girls have games - please root them on!)
Wednesday (09/19) : First-Year practice 4:00 - 5:00 pm ; Varsity practice 5:00 - 6:30 pm*
- 7:30pm - Team Dinner at Mountain Mike's Pizza, 120 El Camino Real, Redwood City (all players and parents are encouraged to attend - please mention "Woodside Water Polo" when ordering)
- **Note the early dismissal time for varsity due to senior college event at WHS. Come to pizza afterwards!**
Thursday (09/20) : GAME VS. EVERGREEN VALLEY @ WHS - Wear your orange and black!
4:00pm - Varsity Game
5:00pm - JV Game
6:00pm - Novice Game
Friday (09/21) : NOVICE AND JV PRACTICE 3:30 - 5:00pm w/ Coach Lynn and new Coach Ryan
ALL VARSITY GAMES ARE NOW ON SATURDAY 9/22
Saturday (09/22) : VARSITY TOURNAMENT at Evergreen Valley High School
- Saturday 9:10am -- Game 1 vs. Lincoln (be there by 8:30am)
- Saturday 10:50am (if we win) or 12:30pm (if we lose) -- Game 2 vs. ?
- Saturday Game 3 will be sometime between 3:00pm and 6:00pm
***VARSITY PARENTS, WE NEED DRIVERS. PLEASE SEND ME AN EMAIL IF YOU CAN TAKE EXTRA PLAYERS IN YOUR VEHICLE AND HAVE THE INSURANCE WHS REQUIRES (Patti Grandov can take a few extra guys on Saturday -- Thanks Patti!)***
Evergreen Valley High School
3300 Quimby Road
San Jose, CA 95148
GO WILDCATS!!!
***---***
(09/13/12)
Congratulations to the Varsity squad on their first win of the season! Wednesday's game was a tough match, we trailed the whole game until the fourth quarter, and then we took the lead and never gave it back. I was amazed by the heart and guts our boys showed by finishing the game strong, and showing that they wanted that win more than the other squad. Great job gentlemen!
I was also very impressed by our JV squad, who played extremely hard and showed incredible improvement from last week, despite losing the game 12-6. At times, their defense was stifling, holding the other team to no shot on goal. They communicated very well, and found the open shooter several times. I am impressed by the potential of this team, and I think the more they play together, the better they will be! Great job gentlemen!
Thank you to all the parents and players who came to pizza after the game! We raised another $38 for the team fund! Let's try to get an even bigger showing at our next team dinner! Go Wildcats!
Lastly, I put the address of Homestead High School down below, next to the game times. Only NOVICE players should attend these games please, and be there on the pool deck 30 minutes before the game start time (you can leave for lunch on Saturday as long as every player has a cleared driver). **All players should have rides by now. If not, PLEASE call or email me ASAP.**
***---***
(09/10/12)
***Team suit and T-shirt orders are due by THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 13TH at practice. Please bring a check for $60.00 made out to:
"Woodside Boys Water Polo Program"
And include on the memo line your son's name, his suit size (size 28-42), and T-shirt size (adult S-XXL). If you have a financial hardship, please email me directly and we will find a way to get your son his team gear!***
This week we host Terra Nova High School at our pool on Wednesday night for our second non-league official match of the year. Varsity will play at 5:15pm and JV will play at 6:15pm (no Novice game). Please come out and cheer on our boys!
After the game on Wednesday, we will meet at Mountain Mike's Pizza in Redwood City at 7:30pm for another team dinner - all parents and players are welcome to attend! Please collect your receipts after ordering and give them to coach Luke so our team can receive the donation at the end of the year!
Lastly, our Novice squad will have their first tournament of the year on Friday September 14th and Saturday September 15th at HOMESTEAD HIGH SCHOOL. See the calendar below for game times. ***NOVICE PARENTS, WE NEED DRIVERS. PLEASE SEND ME AN EMAIL IF YOU CAN TAKE EXTRA PLAYERS IN YOUR VEHICLE AND HAVE THE INSURANCE WHS REQUIRES***
Events this week:
Monday (09/10) : First-Year practice 4:00 - 5:00 pm ; Varsity practice 5:00 - 7:00 pm
Tuesday (09/11) : Varsity practice 5:00 - 7:00 pm (no first-year practice)
Wednesday (09/12) : GAME VERSUS TERRA NOVA @ WHS - Wear your Orange and Black!
5:15pm - Varsity Game
6:15pm - JV Game
(No Novice game)
7:30pm - Team Dinner at Mountain Mike's Pizza, 120 El Camino Real, Redwood City (all players and parents are encouraged to attend - please give all receipts to Coach Luke before leaving)
Thursday (09/13) : First-Year practice 3:30 - 5:00pm ; Varsity Practice 5:00 - 7:00
LAST DAY TO ORDER TEAM SUITS AND T-SHIRTS! (see above)
Friday (09/14) : Varsity Practice 5:00 - 7:00pm (all JV players attend)
NOVICE TOURNAMENT at Homestead High School
7:10pm - Game 1 (All NOVICE players arrive and check-in by 6:30pm)
Saturday (09/15) : NOVICE TOURNAMENT at Homestead High School
10:45 am - Game 2 (All NOVICE players arrive and check-in by 10am)
3:20 pm - Game 3 (All NOVICE players arrive and check-in by 2:30 pm)
Homestead High School
21370 Homestead Road
Cupertino, CA 95014
GO WILDCATS!!!
***---***
(09/06/12)
A big THANK YOU to all of the parents who supported our boys teams by coming to our matches this week. It was great to have folks on deck cheering us on in our first two competitions of the year. While the outcome of the Hillsdale game wasn't what we were hoping for, we were covered by the San Mateo Daily Journal, and you can read the varsity recap here:
[Copy and paste into your browser window]
http://www.smdailyjournal.com/article_preview.php?id=1754258&title=Knights%20top%20%27Cats
An additional thanks to those parents who were able to come to the parents meeting last night. We had a great turnout, a lot of volunteers signed up to help our program throughout the season, and I really enjoyed meeting all of you. I am very excited about our program, our school, and all of the wonderful people involved.
Special thanks to Erin Stockford and Rhonda Dallimonti who donated drinks for our two boys games this week. Without being asked to, they went out of their way to donate their time and money to help the boys programs. THANK YOU! Also, a big thank-you to my patient and supportive wife, Bernadette, who fearlessly helped run the desk at both games and also donated a huge bag of new first-aid supplies to the girls and boys teams. In so many ways, I wouldn't be able to coach again without her help and support.
I also want to recognize what an awesome turnout we had at the first official team dinner last night at Mountain Mike's in Redwood City! I counted over 36 people in one end of the restaurant around 8pm, and I know there were more family members in other areas and folks who came earlier and had to go. I collected receipts from 28 people total - which means $56 back to our program! If you still have receipts you can give them to your boys to give to me at practice -- If not, just remember next time to give them to me so we can get the donation at the end of the season. WHAT A GREAT COMMUNITY OF FAMILIES WE HAVE!!!! I hope everyone had a lot of fun -- I was definitely impressed.
GO WILDCATS!!!!
***---***
(09/05/12)
UPDATED SEASON SCHEDULE IS PROVIDED BELOW, and will also be handed out tonight at the parents meeting.
REMINDER: Dinner at Mountain Mike's in Redwood CIty is TONIGHT @ 7:30pm
***---***
(09/04/12)
I am pleased to announce that Mountain Mike's Pizza in Redwood City has agreed to host all of our team dinners this season. In return, they have pledged to donate 20% of our receipts back to the program at the end of the year! We will plan to have one team dinner a week when we have a game - watch this website for the schedule! Our first dinner will be on Wednesday September 5th, at 7:30 after the parents meeting concludes. Please wait to order until Coach Luke arrives - it is best to have all orders on one receipt if possible. Many thanks to Brian M. at Mountain Mike's! Go Wildcats!
I am also pleased to announce the team captains for the Varsity Squad: Matt Cremers and Luis Mendoza. They were voted on by the team, and I could not be happier with the selections. Congratulations, and let's continue working hard this season!
Reminder to all players and parents of this week's events:
Tuesday 9/4/12 : Game versus Hillsdale @ WHS
4:30pm - First-year Player Meeting (all first-year players must attend)
5:15pm - Varsity Boys vs. Hillside
6:15pm - JV Boys vs. Hillside
Wednesday 9/5/12 : Scrimmage versus Priory @ WHS
4:00pm - Varsity Boys vs. Priory
5:00pm - JV Boys vs. Priory
6:30pm - Parent's Meeting (on the pool deck - all parents are encouraged to attend)
7:30pm - Team Dinner at Mountain Mike's Pizza, 120 El Camino Real, Redwood City (all players and parents are encouraged to attend - please wait for Coach Luke to arrive before ordering)
Thursday 9/6/12 : Varsity Practice 5:30 - 7pm (Girls play before)
Friday 9/7/12 : Varsity Practice 1- 3pm (minimum day, early release - Girls play at 4pm)
***---***
(08/29/12)
Message from the new coach:
Hello players and parents! I am very excited to be confirmed as the new boys water polo head coach at Woodside High School!
The hiring process has taken a while to complete, and I'm doing my best to get caught up with the season, so please bear with me as I go through some growing pains.
My first priority behind the scenes has been to try and get additional games on our schedule, as I inherited an empty season. While working on that, I have been trying to recruit new players, and coordinate with Coach Laura practice times and duties. It has been a rough first week!
I have uploaded the current (but not final) schedule for all BOYS practices and games. I will be handing this out today on the pool deck, but it will be on the website for reference. The most important message to parents: Come see our first game on Tuesday Sept. 4th at our pool! And please attend the PARENTS MEETING on *Wednesday September 5th at 6:30pm* on the pool deck. I will introduce myself to you all, discuss the goals for the season, and highlight some opportunities for parents to get involved and support the program.
Lastly, to ALL NEW PLAYERS: Practices for new players begin at a new time today: 4-5pm on Monday-Wednesday-Friday (see the schedule). The deadline for getting cleared to play is Friday August 31st, and all materials must be on Tuesday September 4th. There is a NEW PLAYER MEETING on Tuesday September 4th from 4:30-5pm on the pool deck, just before our game against Hillsdale.
I will have more information about team suits, fundraising for this year, and more games in the next few days.
Here's to a fun and exciting season of water polo!!!
Best regards,
Luke Plurkowski
Woodside High School
Boys Water Polo Head Coach |
