Boys Water Polo Emerges Victorious in Electric Comeback

The boys’ water polo team emerged victorious in overtime against Archie Williams on Saturday, Oct. 8. The Knights and Falcons fought neck and neck throughout the game, but Archie Williams held a two goal advantage over Menlo with only a few minutes to go. 

Once Menlo narrowed the deficit to a single goal, starting goalie Cormac Mulloy moved out of the goal and into the offense. Mulloy wound up and tied the game with 0.7 seconds left. With overflowing stands and school spirit pumping before the Homecoming football game, Tommy Kiesling capped off the comeback and scored the game winner in overtime to give the Knights the 12-11 win.

Mulloy’s game-tying shot came in an unusual circumstance. Mulloy played goalie for the first three quarters before senior Finn Byrne took over in the fourth; the two combined for 17 saves. With seconds left in the fourth quarter, Head Coach Jack Bowen put Mulloy in again to attempt a 7-on-6 play (where the goalie goes into the offensive half of the pool). Mulloy then skipped the ball under the opposing goalie’s arms, and clinched overtime as the crowd went wild.

“It felt kind of surreal at first, but we’d practiced that 7-on-6 play plenty of times, so I felt pretty confident in the situation,” Mulloy said. “I felt like as a team we showed a lot of resilience and character.”

Mulloy highlighted the defensive strengths throughout the game. “Our offense didn’t get going until late, so it was impressive [that] we were able to hold them to only two goals in the first half, which obviously kept us in the game.”

Kiesling played a huge role in the offensive comeback, netting six goals before ultimately scoring the game winner. Despite the team’s success, he acknowledged that it was not their best showing. “I think the whole team can agree that we didn’t play our best game, but I’m still so happy we were able to pull it out in the end, especially since there were so many people there,” Kiesling said.

After 28 minutes in regular time, the scoreboard read 10-10. In accordance with league rules, the teams lined up to sprint for two three-minute overtime periods. The team that led at the end of the second overtime period would take home the victory.

After the first three minutes of overtime, the score was 11-11; Jackson Coleman contributed Menlo’s goal midway through the period. Over 100 Menlo students, alumni and faculty waited on the edge of their seats as the score remained tied with less than a minute to go. “It was a really exciting game and great environment,” junior Kenya Cassidy said. “It was a tight game the whole time, so it was fun to watch, and everyone was really loud in the stands.”

Mulloy and Kiesling both appreciated the crowd’s amazing energy, which kept them going throughout the game. “The energy was electric, and so many people being there made the win that much sweeter,” Kiesling said.

On their final offensive possession, senior Ethan Babel dimed a pass to Kiesling who scored his seventh goal of the game, giving Menlo the 12-11 lead. The game was not over yet, though, as Archie William raced from the line to try and tie it up. Their buzzer-beater attempt soared high, and the crowd, clad in blue and yellow, erupted into cheers as the bench players jumped in the pool to celebrate with their teammates.