Naperville North Girls Water Polo coach Andy McWhirter and Naperville Central Boys Coach Bill Salentine are calling it a career after more than two decades of dominance in the pool. Between them, they’ve amassed over 1,000 wins and five state championships– each building their programs from the ground up in the 1990s, long before water polo became an IHSA Sport. This story is sponsored by Fair Oaks Ford and Fair Oaks Lincoln.
Andy McWhirter and Bill Salentine built the Naperville Water Polo programs from the ground up
“We had exactly seven girls,” McWhirter recalled. “We were out in Saint Charles, the game went into overtime, and the girls were exhausted. They came away with the win at the very end. That was our first win—with seven girls and no subs.”
That gritty win was the beginning of 549 career wins for McWhirter—fourth all-time in IHSA Girls Water Polo history. Under his leadership, the Naperville North girls earned nine sectional titles, including an incredible seven-year run from 2017 to 2025. During that stretch, North captured back-to-back state titles in 2021 and 2022—going a perfect 29-0 in 2021. The Huskies gave McWhirter one last state trophy this season, finishing third at the State Finals.
The Huskie girls program has only known McWhirter, and across the DuPage River, the Naperville Central boys team has only known Salentine.
“The first several years, it was an hour and a half practice where we swam for an hour and played catch for half an hour, and then, we’d go to games and get just destroyed,” said Salentine. “I never played polo, but I would talk to every coach we played after the game, and ask them, ‘Hey, what can we do? What do we need to work on? How do I do this?’”
That drive turned into success, including 587 career wins, also fourth most in IHSA Boys Water Polo. Over 23 seasons, Salentine led the Redhawks to 13 sectional titles and three state championships, including an undefeated season in 2016 to win his first state title, never once finishing with a losing record.
“It means I’ve been around a long time,” said Salentine with a laugh. “Seriously, we’ve been lucky with great kids, and we had some great years.”
Salentine is the only Naperville Central coach to ever win three IHSA State Titles
In 2002, the first year of IHSA Water Polo, Salentine’s Redhawks upset Neuqua Valley in the sectional final, punching their ticket to the inaugural state tournament.
First-year Naperville Central Athletic Director, Jeff Plackett, was an assistant coach that season under Salentine, before moving on to become the Redhawk girls polo coach from 2003 to 2024.
“He (Bill Salentine) had said for years that success at the end of the season is a byproduct of all of the hard work that you put in,” said Plackett. “It’s something that every single coach knows, I just think that Bill’s approach to planning a season and preparing a team to be playing their best in May is reflected in three state titles.”
“We have an athletic tradition at Naperville Central that goes back to 1910, and he is the only coach in the history of this school to win three state titles,” Plackett added.
McWhirter starts the Naperville Summer Subdivision Water Polo League
Plackett has strong connections to both legendary Naperville coaches. Before graduating from Naperville North in 1997, Plackett swam under McWhirter. He would also lifeguard and help McWhirter in the summer, who was the Pool Manager at Cress Creek.
In 1998, the Naperville Summer Subdivision Water Polo League was created by McWhirter and Plackett.
“We had four teams that first year, kind of playing some little kid water polo,” said McWhirter. “Over the years, it has grown to 12 or 13 of the summer pools or 500 kids playing water polo during the summertime.”
Teams are organized across multiple levels—U-11 Co-Ed, U-14 Girls, and U-14 Co-Ed—with each group capping off the summer season in a competitive citywide tournament. These young athletes often continue their journey in the pool at one of Naperville’s five area high schools, including Andy McWhirter’s son, and Waubonsie Valley boys coach, Mike McWhirter.
“He’s a huge influence, he helped me grow love for this sport, grow Naperville’s love for this sport,” said Mike McWhirter. “(He) brings the joy of water polo in the community together with the youth League and in high school.”
Youth league supplies talent for both McWhirter, Salentine, and all Naperville area schools
Over the last 25 years, that youth league has developed talent and produced 15 state final appearances across the boys and girls programs at North and Central. Including a state title this season from the Huskie boys, who came back to win it 7-6.
Since Water Polo became an IHSA sport in 2002, Naperville Central and Naperville North are just two of five public schools to ever win a state championship in boys or girls. They’re joined alongside Lyons Township, New Trier, and Stevenson, who each have more than 1,500 students than both Naperville Schools.
“I don’t have a favorite of the three state titles,” said Salentine. “It’s like, which kid is your favorite? 2016 was special, I think we proved to the rest of the state that Naperville was the real deal.”
Plackett coached the Central girls for two decades, leading them to six state trophies. On the boys’ side at North, a series of coaches have contributed to five state trophies over the years—including current head coach Kelly Reif, who guided the team to the state title in 2025. Neuqua Valley has also earned state hardware on both sides.
Former athletes return to coach in the IHSA and to watch their children play for their former coaches
Over the years, McWhirter, who was also the longtime head swimming coach for the Naperville North boys and girls, has watched several former players go on to become coaches across the IHSA. While both he and Salentine have had former athletes return—not just to reconnect, but to watch their own children play for the very coaches who once guided them.
“Seeing the people who I have coached who have picked up on that love, Coach Jeff Plackett, Naperville Central, played for me, and is now at Naperville Central. Chris Ortiz from Hinsdale Central played for me. Chad Ganden, who is over at Neuqua Valley, played for me,” Andy McWhirter explained.
“They didn’t play water polo for me, but Coach Kelly (Reif) swam an age group team that I coached years ago,” McWhirter added. “Chris Hagenbaumer over at Waubonsie Valley was part of a summer team that I coached. So, having these connections with kids–who were kids, who loved the sport so much that they’ve moved on in their lives to be coaches as well.”
“Some of the children that I had when I was coaching in the early and middle 1990s were some of my first people through the program. Now, their kids are playing for me,” said Salentine.
Andy McWhirter and Bill Salentine leave behind a legacy that will continue to ripple through the pool for generations to come
Although North and Central are longtime rivals, they are often the first ones to support one another at the state tournament.
“It’s one of the funny things about the rivalry, right?” said Plackett. “It’s a fun thing for the community, It’s a fun thing for the kids, but at the end of the day as coaches, yes, we want to win, but at the same time, when (McWhirter) won his first state title, I wanted to be the first one to call and congratulate him on that. The relationship between the coaching staffs of the two high schools is just a really special thing.”
Since IHSA water polo began in 2002, at least one Naperville school has claimed a sectional title every single season. And thanks to the foundation built by Andy McWhirter and Bill Salentine, that tradition of excellence—and the values they instilled—will continue to ripple through the pool for generations to come.
