Once again, the Greenwich High School girls water polo team’s season had a perfect ending.

An 18-11 victory over visiting Greenwich Aquatics on April 30 put the finishing touch on a perfect season for the Cardinals, who finished yet another spring campaign undefeated.

Greenwich continued its winning tradition this season, rolling to an eye-opening record of 17-0, marking the fourth consecutive year it has gone undefeated.

The Cardinals posted a record of 11-0 in 2021, went 9-0 in 2022, then finished 10-0 in 2023, before upping their schedule to 17 games this spring, going 17-0. Add it up that’s a 47-0 record for the Greenwich High girls water polo program since 2021.

“I think that we completed every goal that we set,” said Cardinals senior Olivia Hopper, who served as captain of the team, along with her twin sister Ashley. “We went undefeated as a team and we really bonded as a team. We had a lot of team dinners and outings. Everyone has gotten so much closer this year and I’m excited to come back and visit next year to see how this chemistry will carry on.”

The Hopper twins did not lose a single game in their high school water polo careers with the Cardinals. They were on all four teams that went unbeaten for four seasons.

“I definitely had a lot of fun and made a lot of close friends that I wouldn’t have made if I didn’t do this all four years,” Ashley Hopper said. “I think that it’s always sad to be done, but it was fun all four years. Obviously, being undefeated all four years feels good too.”

Coached by Jimmy Ramaley, the Cardinals had a busy game schedule during a season that lasted just over one month. They played five games during a fun road trip to Chicago, Illinois, winning each game. The Cards also went 4-0 when they visited the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and were perfect against the teams they played here in the area.

“I think this was a nice capper against a competitive Greenwich Aquatics team,” Ramaley said of Tuesday’s season-ending home win. “This is the most games we’ve had in a while. 17-0 – the Hoppers concluded their careers undefeated.”

Against Greenwich Aquatics in the season finale at GHS, the Cardinals received a team-best four goals from sophomore Julia Gustaffson. Olivia Hopper recorded a hat trick, while Shea Morris and Sofie Wang also scored three goals in the winning effort.

Greenwich led Greenwich Aquatics 4-2 after the first quarter, then took a 10-5 advantage into halftime, displaying impressive passing.

“It was good, we got off to a little bit of a slow start, but after we started to pull away a little bit it was relaxing and more fun,” Ashley Hopper noted.

Sophia Ojjeh, Maeve Donat, Gigi Peck and Ellison Charette each scored one goal in Greenwich’s triumph against a solid Greenwich Aquatics squad.

For the season, the Cardinals enjoyed a balanced scoring effort, receiving a wealth of goals from numerous sources. Ramaley noted that Gustaffson was the team leader in goals scored with 61 for the season.

Kaleigh Murphy and Ojjeh both scored over 30 goals, Ramaley said, while Ashley and Olivia Hopper were right around the 30-goal mark. Wang and Morris had more than 20 goals as well.

“We had eight players scoring more than 20 goals,” Ramaley noted. “We had eight players averaging a goal a game.”

Ashley and Olivia Hopper, Wang and Tess Furno were the senior that provided significant leadership to the Cardinals this spring.

“The seniors were amazing to coach,” Ramale said. “The way that they got the girls to play together was amazing. For them to spread the ball around and for them to be able to play the way they do and get everyone involved was impressive.”

Once again, Norah Mendelsohn was a standout in goal for GHS, making nine saves versus Greenwich Aquatics, while also tallying five assists.

“We beat the defending state champions of Illinois, we defeated the prep school champions and a couple of really good club teams down in Annapolis, so overall, we did well, not just winning, but also playing well and getting players to step up,” said Ramaley while reflecting on the season following his squad’s match against Greenwich Aquatics.

The Hopper sisters will continue their water polo careers together at Bucknell University next season. When they arrive at Bucknell, they will join former Greenwich teammate Bella Schraa, an All-American player for the Cardinals. Schraa is a 2022 Greenwich High School graduate.

“Bucknell will definitely be fun,” Ashley Hopper said. “We had lunch with her (Schraa) a couple of weeks and we were talking about it. Being able to play with her again – I never thought I would play with her again, so it will be great.”

Olivia Hopper looked back on her water polo days for the Cardinals following the 2024 season finale.

“It’s very bittersweet ending with some of my best friends on a great four-year season – every season undefeated,” she said. “I made so many memories with all of these players throughout my water polo career from 10-and-under until now. It’s sad, but I’m very happy looking back on these memories.”

“I’m very excited to be play with my sister in college for four years and a former Greenwich High School player.”

Ashley Hopper will especially remember the team’s trip to Chicago.

“One of the main highlights was going to Chicago and having those four competitive games that we won,” she said. “Bonding with the team and touring Chicago during the day and playing the games at night – that was a lot of fun.”