All-District Water Polo: Wave of success for Johansen's Plaster

POSITION: 2-meter defender/hole set

IN THE POOL: Plaster leaves the Johansen aquatic center dripping in success. The two-time Modesto Metro Conference Most Valuable Player was the Stanislaus District’s only representative on the all-Sac-Joaquin Section team, Division 1 or 2. He led the district with 113 goals and ranks third all-time in the program’s rich history with 251 goals.

A three-year varsity starter, the Vikings (26-5) were unmatched in conference play during that time. Success did not come easily for this former football player: “In order to be top player, you have to train,” said Plaster, the Bee’s Boys Water Polo Player of the Year. “I started swimming year-round. Even this year, I started training at the gym. I needed to get bigger if I was going to play in college.”

OUT OF THE POOL: Plaster carries a weighted 3.5 GPA with three AP classes: statistics, government and literature. He has one acceptance letter in his back pocket, and it’s his top pick: the University of the Pacific.

LOOKING AHEAD: Plaster will make official college visits to Chapman University and Concordia in the spring, but he hopes his acceptance to UOP will include a tryout with the men’s water polo team. “They’re great team and did really well. It’s the whole atmosphere,” he said. “They have a lot of Euros and I think you’d learn a lot. It would be nice to play there.” QUOTABLE: “He was somebody who lacked size and wasn’t very fast, but he worked hard in water polo. He grew and got stronger, and over the last two or three years, he’s been our leading scorer. … He’s turned himself into a water polo player. He didn’t have a lot of natural ability when he first came to this sport, but he has a real love for it.” — Brent Bohlender, Johansen coach

— JAMES BURNS