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BACK-TO-BACK: Halford drives success of Clear Creek Water Polo State Powerhouse
The Clear Creek boys water polo team has established itself as a dynasty in the making, capturing back-to-back State Championships under head coach Anthony Halford.
With much of the offensive firepower returning, the Wildcats have their sights set on an elusive three-peat — and the drive to make it happen.
VYPE’s Matt Malatesta sat down with Coach Halford, a proud Clear Creek alum, to dive into what makes this program one of the best in Texas.
From his unlikely introduction to the sport to the culture he’s built around discipline, toughness, and team chemistry, Halford shares what it truly takes to be a Wildcat in the pool.
Watch the full interview now on VYPE.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
Foster Water Polo's Jasmine Brown & Connie Garcia
THE RECAP: UIL Water Polo/Team Tennis 2024 State Tournament Results
Over the course of this past week, numerous state champions were ultimately decided in the first edition of the UIL Fall tournaments.
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At the Josh Davis Natatorium in San Antonio, two Houston heavyweights in Brazoswood (26-2) and Foster (30-0) advanced to the 6A Girls Finals, on the heels of defeating Southlake Carroll (Score: 14-8) and Boerne-Champion (Score: 23-4), respectively.
Both faced off this past Saturday, in what was a hard-fought battle that was ultimately decided by an 11-9 overtime victory for Brazoswood.
This marked the first state title for the Buccaneers, who denied the back-to-back champs Foster the opportunity to secure a three-peat.
In terms of accolades, Brazoswood's Mallory Kesler (Sr.) was named the State MVP, with Kinley Niles (Foster), Gigi Lower (Brazoswood), Cassidy Jacks (Foster), Hope Kadlecik (Brazoswood), Cayden VanDyne (Boerne-Champion), and Sydney Rubin (Southlake Carroll) being named to the 2024 All-Tournament team.
On the boys' side, Clear Creek (30-0-1) defeated perennial state contender Foster, by the score of 19-12, while Marcus (22-0) toppled Boerne-Champion (Score: 22-16) in order to move on to the State Final.
By the end of regulation, it would be the Clear Creek Wildcats who dethroned the 2023 state champions Marcus Marauders, in a definitive 14-10 triumph on Saturday afternoon.
Clear Creek senior Jamie De Zwart was named State MVP, while the All-Tournament team included Owen Kroh (Marcus), Ethan Jerla (Clear Creek), Landon Heuer (Marcus), Caden Digby (Clear Creek), Bexon Harrison (Boerne-Champion), and Foster's Ethan Molina.
Regardless of the result, all sides should feel pride in the dominance they've shown since the sport was finally recognized by the UIL in 2021.
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Meanwhile, at the Baylor University Tennis Center, there was a slew of teams competing for gold this past Thursday.
In the Class 4A bracket, the two squads who climbed all the way to the top were Canyon Randall (33-1) and Willis Point (21-3).
When all was said and done, however, it was Randall who took the title home after winning 10-4, to reclaim their 2022 championship-status.
Abilene Wylie (23-5) and Frisco Centennial (19-2) went head-to-head, representing the 5A classification, with the Centennial Titans emerging victorious (Score: 10-2), marking their second-straight title acquisition.
Last, but not least, in Thursday's proceedings, the UIL-6A Final came down between Round Rock Westwood (19-0) and Seven Lakes (17-3-1).
Despite a valiant effort by Seven Lakes, the, now, back-to-back-to-back State Champs Westwood Warriors were simply too much to handle, having won it all by the score of 10-3, also marking the fifth time in seven years that the program has done so.