Your name:  Reza Behnam

Your School:  Kirkwood HS

School Mascot:  Pioneers

Sport: Water Polo

How many years have you been coaching?  15 yearrs

What was your record last year?   11- 12

How is your team shaping up for this season?  We have had an excellent start.  Currently, we are Founders Cup Champions.  We won this Invitational in the first week of competition.  Our current record is 5-2.  On the most recent coaches poll we are ranked 5th in Districts.  We have a lovely combination of experience, speed, and strength. 

Team leaders: Matt Berry is our Sr. goalie and captain.  He is one of the best goalies in St Louis.  Johnathan Klippel is our other captain.  He is a tremendous defender and leader.  Our other key players are Brian Mcvey as a powerful attacking forward, Matt Dawes because his speed and excellent shooting strengths, Christian Stanza with his amazing work rate and as an all round utility player, Mitchell Bequette as another well balanced attacker and defender, and Chris Diven with his speed and attacking presence. 

Impact players: Brian Mcvey will be a force at the attacking end of the pool and Matt Berry will be our wall in Goal.  I look to these 2 players to provide the foundation for the squad. 

Challenges: The top 4 teams are going to be difficult to beat because of their speed and strength.  If we can focus our energies on becoming an awesome defensive team we can do very well against the top 4.  The offensive aspect will take care of itself over the course of the season because we have some talented attackers. 

What is the best part about coaching this team? This is a very coach-able group of athletes.  They are hungry to learn, improve, and win.  You can judge a team's motivation by their focus and intensity in practice.  Because of our pool situation, we get just over an hour of pool time each day.  As a result, I am amazed by how disciplined the guys are in their focus during practice.  They know pool time is vital and limited.  They work to squeeze every minute out of the sessions.  I am impressed and proud of their work rate.