The Greenwich High School boys water polo team has a winning tradition that spans more than four decades and this fall’s Cardinals squad is certainly continuing the program’s successful legacy.

Through 11 games, the Cardinals have just one loss and are soaring toward another season to remember.

Receiving goals from numerous athletes, Greenwich scored a decisive 21-8 home win over Staples High School in a matchup held on Tuesday. The Cardinals entered the game off a solid second-place finish at the Beast of the East Tournament in Pennsylvania last weekend – their loss coming to neighborhood rival Brunswick School in the tournament’s championship game.

Brunswick has enjoyed outstanding seasons for a number of years and will most likely play Greenwich two more times this season.

“So far the season is going pretty well,” Greenwich senior tri-captain Chris Killeen said. “We just got back from the Beast of the East Tournament, where we got second place to Brunswick. Our rivalry has stretched the past four years of my high school career. We are gearing up and are prepared to have them here at our Cardinal Tournament, where we can, hopefully, gain some revenge.”

The Cardinals and the Bruins are the favorites to advance to the championship game of the Cardinal Tournament at Greenwich High School, so if it does happen, that matchup will indeed, be one to watch for water polo fans.

Killeen, Santi Di Como and Csongor Bartuszek are the Cardinals’ senior captains.

“It feels great to be a leader of this team with a lot of young guys – a lot of them look up to you,” Di Como said. “It’s nice to have a bunch of little brothers around you. Being able to be competitive with your friends is the best feeling and I’m proud of all of them.”

Excelling on both ends of the pool, GHS cruised to its 10th win of the season, showing its depth and skill on offense and defense.

“A win is always great, this game really shows how hard we work and how dedicated everyone is,” Bartuszek said of the Cards’ win versus Staples. “We have a lot of depth, our bench can score just as many as the starting lineup. We have great players all around.”

Against Staples, Bartuszek recorded a team-high four goals and added a steal, while Blake Lowe scored three times and had one assist to power the Cardinals. Killeen tallied two goals, one assist and two steals and senior Kegan Clark scored twice in the winning effort.

Also leading the Cardinals to their impressive win against the Wreckers were Di Como (one goal, one steal), Jake Melley (one assist), Luke Mendelsohn (one goal, three assists), Charlie Koven (three assists), Robert Norell (one goal, one assist, three steals), Calvin Donat (two goals), Jasper Hirt (two goals), Aedan Browning (one goal), Chase Goldstein (one goal)goalie Leo Dilascia (one goal) and Will Hanna (one assist, one steal).

“It was nice having a day to recuperate after playing in the Beast of the East,” Killeen noted. “We still need to be better on our passing and we need to be better awareness-wise and cover for each other when need be.”

At the Beast of the East Tournament last weekend, the Cardinals were defeated by Brunswick in the championship game, 16-10. Coached by Jimmy Ramaley, Greenwich posted a record of 4-1 in the Beast of the East tourney, including a 14-6 win over Skyline High School from Utah in the semifinal-round.

“Our depth was showing in some of those games,” Ramaley said of his squad’s performance at the Beast of the East. “Our sophomore and junior class is really strong, so that was nice to see them play so well.”

Greenwich will host its Cardinal Invitational Tournament next month and will hit the road, as they will travel to California to take on some premier competitors.

“I think we are going to be a really good team by the middle of October,” Di Como said. “Everyone is pretty good at swimming, the passing is getting better, the shooting is getting better the goalie is getting better.”