SALEM, W.Va. — With the clock ticking down on his collegiate water polo career, Salem University Tigers senior Djordje Stavrevski caught a pass in the corner, one-on-one with a defender and only the goalie behind them.
In one quick motion, Stavrevski lobbed the ball over the defender and spun around him, leaving the opponent in his wake before scooping up the ball and sending it into the back of the net for his final collegiate goal—No. 280 on his career, extending his school career record—as the Tigers recovered from a heartbreaking sudden death overtime loss in the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference (MAWPC) Western Region Championship to defeat La Salle University and finish the season 12-13.
“I think we had a good year. It’s not where we wanted to finish. We wanted to end it competing for a championship,” head coach Robert Bullion said. “But I want to give the team a ton of credit. They fought all the way to the end.”
Stavrevski and fellow senior Chad Doerrman joined the water polo team in 2014 along with Mike Roake, who red-shirted that season, going 3-16 that season. With Marton Dudok joining them the following year, the four helped to build a program considerably stronger than they found it.
“They’ve been here since we could barely hold our own,” Bullion said. “They’ve seen the downs and up and how this team has come together.”
The Salem University men’s water polo team received many individual accolades, getting reliable performances from its seniors and breakthrough seasons from several young players.
Though Stavrevski leaves the Tigers with a final MAWPC-West All-Conference First Team selection (and the final MAWPC Player of the Week award of the season), Salem University will still have another returning in Milos Popovic, who led the team with 62 goals this season and finished second in assists with 34—winning two MAWPC Player of the Week awards.
Petar Leontijevic, with 29 goals, 27 assists, 41 steals and one MAWPC Rookie of the Week award, was named the conference’s Rookie of the Year.
Freshman goalie David Romero recorded 227 saves and 43 steals, shining in the CWPA NCAA Division II Championships in helping the Tigers earn a second-place finish, earning All-Tournament Second Team honors. Leontijevic was named the Rookie of the Tournament and All-Tournament Second Team, along with Dudok, and Popovic was All-Tournament First Team.
Romero also won one MAWPC Defensive Player of the Week award and two MAWPC Rookie of the Week awards.
Freshman Marino Chorro also won two MAWPC Rookie of the Week Awards.
“Overall, we had a lot of individual accomplishments. It’s crazy to think we have a young team with a lot to look forward to,” Bullion said. “It makes it difficult for me to come up with a starting lineup. It’s a good problem to be able to fill any position on the water and have quality all the way through.
“We have to keep this core group together and just develop. It’s nice to see we have a lot of opportunities to improve. Inigo Velasco will be a senior, he’s our captain. Robert Juhas is the voice of the defense. Guys just stepped up every game. Next man up was kind of our way of doing things all year.”
Some inconsistent performances with flashes of individual brilliance is the mark of a young team figuring things out. The seniors leaving helped to build the expectations and, as the younger players continue to grow as a team, the program looks to grow even more in the future.
Release courtesy Salem International University Athletics Communications
