Throughout the first five games of the EYL season, the Rangers have a record of 5-0. Players share their thoughts on how the league season is going so far.
By: Lucas de Lima
The EYL (East Yosemite League) season has started off perfect for the Varsity Boys Water Polo team, with their record of 5-0 earning them first place in the EYL standings. The Rangers have an overall record of 14-5 for the season.
The Rangers opened EYL play with back-to-back games in Porterville, on October 1st and 3rd, playing the Portervile Panthers and the Monache Marauders. They left Porterville with wins of 13 to 6 over the Panthers and 28 to 3 over the Marauders.
The next week the Rangers had their first pair of EYL home games, on October 8th and 10th, against a pair of city rivals in the Golden West Trailblazers and the El Diamante Miners. The Rangers took care of business at home, beating the Traiblazers 18 to 5 and the Miners 21 to 4.
against Bullard on 9/10
Photo I.Zavalas/Gigantea
On October 15th, the Rangers played their final game of the first half of EYL, a home fixture against another city rival, the Mt. Whitney Pioneers. The Rangers won handily by a score of 11 to 3.
On the buildup to the game against the Pioneers, #3 Kelan Anderson, ’25, says, “It’s really fun because they’re our cross-town rivals, they’re right down the street from us. We always think about playing these guys, a lot of them we have known throughout polo. It’s really fun to play these guys.”
“It’s all in good nature, it’s all in good competition. We all want to win, so we’ll do whatever we can to win,” says Anderson on the rivalry with the Pioneers.
Looking towards the second half of league, Anderson says, “We just got to do it all over again. We’re 5 and 0 right now, halfway through league, and we want to go undefeated.”
#7 Cody Burton, ’25, says, “We’re just going to keep the ball rolling, keep focusing up, and keep doing the best we can.
against Bullard on 9/10
Photo I.Zavalas/Gigantea
#18 Josiah Loza, ’26, on what he needs to improve on for the second half, says, “I noticed that I need to work on my conditioning, and work on my legs the [most]. So that’s what I’m going to be focusing on after the first half of league.”
On what the team should work on for the second half of league, Loza says, “I think we should be working on pressure passing, we’ve noticed a lot of our guys have collapsed under a lot of pressure.”
#4 David Ross, ’25, leads the team in goals so far this season, with 55 scores. Burton leads the team in assists with 30.
Redwood will finish the EYL season at the Pioneers on October 31st, at 6PM.
The team has high aspirations for their season, with Burton saying, “Hopefully going far in playoffs and making it to finals for Valley, whether that’s D1 or D2.”
Lucas de Lima
Lucas de Lima, '25, is a proud managing editor and sports writer for the Redwood Gigantea. Outside of journalism, he is part of the FBLA and FFA organizations, as well as the tennis program. You can reach him by email at lucas.de3708@vusd.us
Tags: rangers, Redwood, redwood eyl, redwood gigantea, redwood high school, redwood journalism, redwood league, redwood rangers, redwood sports, redwood water polo, rhs, rhs eyl, rhs league, rhs water polo, visalia ca
