UC Irvine men’s water polo lands standout goalie

Benoit Viollier, a senior at Saint Francis High School in Mountain View, Calif., has signed a national letter of intent with the UC Irvine men’s water polo program, announced by Anteaters’ head coach Marc Hunt.

Viollier, a three-year starter at goalie for Saint Francis, earned 2014 Division I Central Coast Section Most Valuable Player honors in addition to first team All-CCS recognition for Coach Terry O’Donnell.

Viollier has also been a member of the Stanford Water Polo Club since 2007, competing in multiple top-tier tournaments.

“Adding an experienced goalie like Benoit immediately strengthens our goalkeeper corps, and he is a player who has the ability to make immediate contributions to our team,” Hunt said in a release. “Benoit has played a great deal of high-level water polo and has experienced leadership through tough situations.

“We are pleased to welcome Benoit and his family to UCI,” Hunt added.

— From staff reports