The Monmouth College men's water polo team wrapped up their inaugural season as a varsity program almost a year to the day after winning the NCAA Division III Club Water Polo National Championship.

Competing against varsity teams for the first time, the Fighting Scots finished their season 5-9 and earned the respect of many established programs. The team also gained a newfound respect for their sport.

"We weren't exactly sure what to expect going into the season," said Josh Dunn. "Varsity is an entirely higher level of play. On the club level, what you got one time against a team was pretty much what you could expect in your next game against them. In varsity play, every game can be different from the last. There's a lot more coaching and strategy involved now that we're a varsity program."

The Scots – who averaged nearly 13 goals per game – were able to piece together a modest two-game win streak as they faced ranked teams four times, closing the gap in rematches against those teams.

Monmouth came back from a season-opening loss to No. 10 Washington and Jefferson and nearly turned the tables on the Presidents in the opening round of the South Division Championships. The Scots led 3-2 in the first quarter before succumbing 11-7.

Dunn's team was on the short end when it came to game experience this season. With just 14 games under their caps this season, every team the Scots faced had more pool time, but Dunn is not using that as an excuse.

"It really wasn't that big of a deal," said Dunn in downplaying the game differential. "It may have been a factor in some of our close games. Had we been able to play those high level teams more often, I think we may have been better prepared when it came down to crunch time."

The Scots were able to win some tight games, earning their first win in overtime – in just their second game as a varsity sport. Three other wins were decided by three goals, while three losses were by four goals or less.

Sophomore Raheem Brown didn't have much trouble scoring goals. He led the team with 64, averaging 4.57 goals per game – including an 11-goal outburst against Notre Dame College in the season finale. Senior Tony Marino ended his career as the team's No. 2 scorer, putting 35 shots in the back of the net, while freshman Kameron Simmones-Gil added 24 scores and senior Gabe Baginksi finished with 21.

"Next year should be interesting," predicted Dunn. "We're pretty set with what we want our offense to do, but we'll graduate Gabe, Tony and Chris (Falkenrath). They've been keys to the program. They helped us make the adjustment from club to varsity. Now that our underclassmen have experienced that change, they'll be much better prepared next fall."

Chances are the Scots' opponents may have to do more prep work as the once fledgling squad enters Year Two as veterans.