White water, goggled faces and bobbing yellow heads stand out from the pool. Beneath its surface, a flurry of kicks keep player's treading, their shoulders and legs move constantly. Attention is on the opposing team's defense, orchestrating an offense and finding lanes to exploit. A common goal to work in unison displays itself choreographically. They share the tragedy of loss and the stoke of victory- meet your Santa Cruz women's water polo team.
The UCSC women's water polo team ended their season on a high note last weekend after placing third in the nation in Division III. The Slugs season ends with an overall record of 13-18 and 10-2 in Division III.
They were seeded first going into the annual Division III Championships that took place at Connecticut College May 2-4. Placed in the role of contender and lauded as best in the nation, expectations and anxieties ran rampant.
A week before the national tournament player's begun adjusting their daily routines to mirror east coast time, doing things three hours earlier. Bundled in a red eye flight to Connecticut thoughts of a national title hung in the air. Having arrived early in the a.m., the team crammed into one hotel room for morning showers before suiting up.
Overall the team won their bracket impressively. After celebrating a victory in the quarterfinals, they struggled early in the semi-finals, falling behind 6-1. A rally would tie the game at 8-8 but a few ill timed penalty shots in the last few minutes of the game would end the Slugs hopes for a win. Chelsea Myers, a fourth year senior alluded to the early struggles of the second round game against Cal Lutheran.
"By half we came back strong and were tied 8 to 8," Myers said. "Sadly, even though we all played our hardest, there were a couple interesting calls within the last minute and a half which caused us to lose the game. But it was a great game and we all played our hearts out."
The loss eliminated Santa Cruz's hopes of a championship run but the season was by all measures a success.
"The thing that I remember is what happened next," Simonis said. "Our coaches let us take showers and afterwards, told us to remember that we had made it to the big show and knew we could win it and that that in and of itself is a major feat. It is easy to be on a team that wins everything. True team unity and character really shows when you lose something that you want desperately. So we all let out a few tears and then went out to dinner and laughed and focused on the next big feat, securing third place."
With a renewed sense of focus and determination, they would dominate their next opponent to secure third place. Co-Head Coach Alan Cima was especially proud of his team's illustration of gamesmanship in the face of adversity.
"In the always difficult bronze medal game we played fantastically and really pounded our opponent," Cima said. "What stands out to me is that although we finished third, in the season we were 2-2 against the teams that finished first and second and that we had more players on the all tournament team than the 1st and 2nd place teams. That shows what the opposing coaches thought about our players."
All around, most felt that the team and program had grown exponentially over those three days.
"Maybe we didn't get first place," Simonis said. "But thinking that we could is something new- it is only the beginning for Santa Cruz."
The UCSC women's water polo team ended their season on a high note last weekend after placing third in the nation in Division III. The Slugs season ends with an overall record of 13-18 and 10-2 in Division III.
They were seeded first going into the annual Division III Championships that took place at Connecticut College May 2-4. Placed in the role of contender and lauded as best in the nation, expectations and anxieties ran rampant.
A week before the national tournament player's begun adjusting their daily routines to mirror east coast time, doing things three hours earlier. Bundled in a red eye flight to Connecticut thoughts of a national title hung in the air. Having arrived early in the a.m., the team crammed into one hotel room for morning showers before suiting up.
Overall the team won their bracket impressively. After celebrating a victory in the quarterfinals, they struggled early in the semi-finals, falling behind 6-1. A rally would tie the game at 8-8 but a few ill timed penalty shots in the last few minutes of the game would end the Slugs hopes for a win. Chelsea Myers, a fourth year senior alluded to the early struggles of the second round game against Cal Lutheran.
"By half we came back strong and were tied 8 to 8," Myers said. "Sadly, even though we all played our hardest, there were a couple interesting calls within the last minute and a half which caused us to lose the game. But it was a great game and we all played our hearts out."
The loss eliminated Santa Cruz's hopes of a championship run but the season was by all measures a success.
"The thing that I remember is what happened next," Simonis said. "Our coaches let us take showers and afterwards, told us to remember that we had made it to the big show and knew we could win it and that that in and of itself is a major feat. It is easy to be on a team that wins everything. True team unity and character really shows when you lose something that you want desperately. So we all let out a few tears and then went out to dinner and laughed and focused on the next big feat, securing third place."
With a renewed sense of focus and determination, they would dominate their next opponent to secure third place. Co-Head Coach Alan Cima was especially proud of his team's illustration of gamesmanship in the face of adversity.
"In the always difficult bronze medal game we played fantastically and really pounded our opponent," Cima said. "What stands out to me is that although we finished third, in the season we were 2-2 against the teams that finished first and second and that we had more players on the all tournament team than the 1st and 2nd place teams. That shows what the opposing coaches thought about our players."
All around, most felt that the team and program had grown exponentially over those three days.
"Maybe we didn't get first place," Simonis said. "But thinking that we could is something new- it is only the beginning for Santa Cruz."
