On Nov. 1, the boys’ water polo playoff run officially ended in the second round of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section Division V postseason. The Dragons met their match, as they dropped a close one on the road against Cajon High School, 8-7.  

Reflecting on the season finale and his last game as a Dragon, Ben Clinton ‘19 noted that advancing to the next round was within reach, but “we got eliminated in such a close game.”

“I feel like we did well for our division, but I believe we had the potential to [finish] first,” he said. “Overall, I’m glad that I got to experience water polo at Foothill, and it was really fun.”

BWP: @FoothillTech drops a close one tonight 7-8 against Cajon HS, @CIFSS Divison 5, round 2 @vcspreps @TCAAinformation @FDP_Sports

— FTHS Athletics (@fths_athletics) November 2, 2018

Departing seniors from the Class of 2019 include Clinton, Mason King ‘19, Zion Denzel ‘19, Liam Murphy ‘19, Patrick Bello ‘19, Gage Corsi ‘19 and Ian Canby ‘19. With the core of the team that has led Foothill to back-to-back successful seasons now gone, head coach David Wallace’s varsity roster will undoubtedly look much different when the 2019 season rolls around. Despite this, Clinton stated that “the future of FTHS [boys’ water polo] looks very bright.”

“With most [of] the freshmen and some sophomores being very good, I can say, now that our high school season is over, that those freshmen will become beasts,” he explained. “When they are seniors, I could see them winning our league and CIF.”

The Dragons finish their season with a 17-7 overall record. Meanwhile, the Cowboys of Cajon High School will advance to the next round, where they will face Beaumont High School on Nov. 3. On Nov. 1, Beaumont and their prolific offense won their second round matchup over Monrovia High School with a final score of 19-10.