The562’s coverage of aquatic sports in Long Beach is sponsored by the Aquatic Capital of America Foundation.
Successful Long Beach water polo has always been defined by strong defense and deadly counter attacks. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that the best Long Beach players have taken the hometown recipe to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France
On Tuesday when Team USA had their backs to the wall against Romania in Group A action, it was Long Beach’s own Hannes Daube, Max Irving, Ryder Dodd and Chase Dodd who stepped up and carried the Americans to 14-8 victory.
“They’ve played that way since they were youth players,” said USA assistant coach and Long Beach State coach Gavin Arroyo before the tournament. “They thrive in it.”
The game was tied 3-3 at the end of the first quarter, and Team USA earned an exclusion on the first possession of the second quarter. After some good ball movement, Irving found Daube for the power play goal and the lead. At the other end, Chase Dodd came up with a big steal to stop Romania.
A few possessions later, the Americans earned a 5-meter penalty shot that Ryder Dodd converted for his first Olympic goal. Then off of another steal, Irving used his speed to get out on the counter attack and score. All of that was part of a 7-0 run that put the game away.
Recent rule changes for substitutions on the fly, much like a hockey team would substitute, has allowed the Long Beach style of play to be more effective.
“I prefer water polo like this, it’s more exciting for the fans,” said Team USA coach Dejan Udovicic. “And for us coaches we’re figuring out new dynamics about subs and set pieces that give us a lot of new opportunities. We’re doing new stuff and learning from other teams. It’s good. I like that direction. There is a lot of room to upgrade the new rules.”
Daube has been one of the best players in the Paris pool so far with a pair of hat tricks in two matches. What has really separated him has been the ability to change the game with smart defense and passing as well.
“He was very talented from an early age and In the last couple of years he matured,” Udovicic said of Daube. “Right now he’s not just a scorer with a good shot and scoring goals. He’s elevated his game and accepted becoming a two-way player. And as the future of the water polo game is changing so quickly and the (pace) is so high that it’s different from college. Everything is quicker. His (adjustment) is so helpful for the team.”
That unselfishness has permeated throughout this unique group of young American water polo players.
“You can find talented, hard working or emotional players, but what’s special about this group is that they’re all good people,” said Arroyo “Sometimes there’s inherent selfishness that you get from alpha male DNA. This group doesn’t have that. We got the alpha without the baggage. That’s unique.”
Irving is a great example of that unselfish approach because he’s a natural team player who will do anything for his team. He scored twice against Romania, and Chase Dodd assisted his second goal.
“Max is a prototypical team player,” Arroyo said. “He’s humble, he’s hard working and he’s focused on the task at hand for the group.”
“He’s not just bringing something for this team, he’s bringing something for every kid who wants to play water polo,” Udovicic said of Irving. “I remember very well when we called Max to join (the national team) when no one believed in Max. He’s now one of the most respected players in Europe (club circuit) at a high level. He’s a great teammate and I’m only hearing positive things about him from everyone. Max is the hope for every new kid to believe in themselves to work hard and never quit. I’m really super excited about Max and the last seven years of how he lived his life.”
The Dodd brothers both scored once, their first Olympic goals, while locking down the Romania attack, especially during the 7-0 run.
“I am a twin brother as well so I know how it is,” Udovicic said, referring to the Dodd’s. “They’re totally different, but they’re sharing the same goal. Their expectations (for themselves and each other) are as high as possible. They’re really warriors and winners. We’re so glad we have them both. They help each other with different styles of water polo. For me as a coach, my job is to create the big puzzle and get everyone to work well in that puzzle. Those two fit into that puzzle very well.”
It was also a great Long Beach connection from the NBC announcer booth where Long Beach legend Tony Azevedo was doing the color commentary. He even mentioned during the broadcast that he’s been sending messages to the Long Beach players between games to encourage them.
Team USA is back in the pool on Thursday to take on Greece in more Group A action. They are 1-1 after a loss to Italy in the opener.
Men’s Volleyball
The Americans have already won their first two matches of group play with a sweep of Argentina and a five-set thriller against Germany. Long Beach State product T.J. DeFalco and the rest of Team USA will finish their group stage against Japan on Friday, and then start the quarterfinal round on Monday.
In the 25-20. 25-19, 25-16 sweep of Argentina, DeFalco showed off his incredible ability behind the line and served up a match-high four aces. The outside hitter also put down nine kills and a block for a total of 14 points, and only teammate Aaron Russell had more. DeFalco only had one error on 12 attack attempts.
In the 25-21, 25-17, 17-25, 20-25, 15-11 victory over Germany on Tuesday, DeFalco made one of the most impressive highlight plays in the second set. He went to knees for a one-handed dig with his left arm, then popped up and came forward for the back-row kill with his right arm. DeFalco finished with 14 kills, two blocks and two aces in the match.
Women’s Volleyball
Unfortunately, Team USA was on the losing end of an incredible opening match against China. The Americans came back to win sets three and four to force a fifth set, but China held on 25-20, 25-19, 17-25, 20-25, 15-13.
“It just highlights how thin the margins are and how we have to take care of some of these little plays,” coach Karch Kiraly said in the post-match press conference. “And I want to give our team a huge amount of credit for fighting back. It is not easy to come back from down 2-0 against a really good China team.”
American libero and Long Beach representative Justine Wong-Orantes finished with 17 digs.
“It was a hard-fought match. It was definitely heartbreaking,” Wong-Orantes said in the press conference. “But it was really encouraging honestly. Going five with a team like China is incredible and squeezing out any point we can get in this pool is going to be important for us.”
Men’s Rugby
It was a disappointing Olympics for the Americans after being eliminated by Australia 18-0 in the quarterfinals. Team USA played host France to a 12-12 draw in the first match of Pool C, and then lost to Fiji before beating Uruguay 33-17.
Long Beach’s Belmont Rugby representatives Marcus Tupuola, Lucas Lacamp and Adam Channel all got playing time in Paris. Tupuola and Lacamp scored both tries for the Americans in the opener against France. Channel, a Millikan High alum, came off the bench in the classification matches against Ireland and Argentina. Team USA finished eighth in the tournament.
