Water Polo Multi-Platform Package
An Underdog Team Prevails in a Little-Known Sport
It
was 2020 and we were facing the running state champs, North Penn High School.
The stands were packed with a ready crowd. The pregame nerves of the players
had set in. There had not yet been a team that year that had even come close to
taking down these reigning champs, but that was about to change. The rest of my
team and I began the game with our normal excitement but no particular
expectations of victory. The starting whistle blew and the game began. It was
gruesome play and my entire team was playing at their very best. The first half
flew by, ending in a surprising tie at the half time whistle. Suddenly we began
to realize that we had a realistic shot at taking down the one and only North
Penn.
Basketball.
Baseball. Football. Soccer. Hockey. Tennis. There is a limitless list to the
sports that are known and supported worldwide. However, there is a sport that
holds a much smaller community and support group and is only just beginning to
rise in popularity worldwide. This is the sport of water polo. After a lifetime
of supporting the same sport repeatedly, would it not be more exciting to be
offered the opportunity to learn about an entirely new sport that is played at
a fast tempo and holds the attention of its audience for the entirety of a
nail-biting game? I would say so.
What is Water Polo?
A
sport that involves fourteen people in a pool, water polo most closely
resembles the sport of basketball. Though it does not compare very accurately,
it holds the similar ideas of players going back and forth with everyone on
offense and then defense while setting picks and running plays in order to get
goals. In contrast to basketball, water polo is an extremely aggressive contact
sport that holds rules that allow most things in the game to occur with no calls
from the refs. The pool is set up in a way that looks similar to a soccer pitch
in water, with goals having a similar net except smaller and floating! In
contrast to other sports, one of the main unique aspects of this sport is the
fact you can only ever be holding the ball with one hand, if you accidentally
catch or block a ball with two it is turned over to the opposing team. Unlike
basketball, water polo has more of a structured offense and defense called a
three-three. This is where the six players line up in two perpendicular lines
of three players each and for the most part remain in that formation. There are
set positions that players are accustomed to being in to best support their
team. From this formation the ball is passed around in the 30 seconds you have
for each offense (when that time is up a buzzer goes off and the ball is handed
over to the opposing team) until an opportunity to shoot and score is taken.
Like any other sport, if the ball accidentally goes out of bounds, it is again turned
over to the opposing team. Though there are these base rules to follow, the
element of violence due to the ease of breaking the rules and going unnoticed
by the refs, is the cause for the majority of water polo’s popularity thanks to
under water cameras showing the true reality of this game.
The World Below
The
rules of water polo are extremely lenient because it is difficult for the refs
(one on either side of the pool) to see all that is going on beneath the water.
This is where the violence of the sport comes into play. Above the surface
everything appears legal, when truly below the water there is suit grabbing,
kicking, punching, and even scratching throughout the entirety of the game.
Generally, players will do anything to gain the advantage, and that is simply an
accepted and normal aspect of the game. If seen of course, the refs will call
it and either kick a player out or call an ordinary foul, but most often they
are trained to simply watch the player with the ball, and the other five
players are left to fend for themselves. As my college coach, Alyssa Diacono,
said when interviewed about this sport, “As a coach, there is a difficult
balance between teaching my players to legally and teaching them how to play in
the way other teams are going to by bending the rules.” Though I may have now
made it seem like some awful violent sport, it is truly a thrilling,
competitive, physical sport that can be both tiring and fun! When first
starting out, many of these “underwater” complications are non-existent and do
not develop until more advanced play, so there is no need to worry if you are
planning on becoming a beginner water polo player anytime soon!
Basic Rules
1.
Can’t touch the bottom of the pool.
2.
Can’t touch the ball with two hands.
3.
Can’t visibly drown the other team.
4.
Cannot shoot if fouled inside of a certain
distance from the goal marked by a cone.
5.
Once you foul a player you must swim back
a stroke and give them a free pass.
6.
No diving in the pool when subbed in by
your coach.
7.
When kicked out due to aggression you
cannot touch anyone while swimming to the corner (like a penalty box).
Feelings of Victory
We began the next half with a newfound energy and drive
to fight until the very last whistle. It was obvious on the face of the
opposing coach that this game was an unexpected struggle for his team. It came
down to the last two minutes when our coach called a timeout. The game remained
tied. This time out huddle is one I will remember forever, we each just kept
looking at each other and repeating “this is our game, let’s finish it.”
It was our offensive play
coming out of this timeout, and I am forever grateful I was not the one taking
the shot. Time was ticking, but we were patient, and our final shot came in the
last five seconds of our possession and swished right into the back of the net.
The crowd was on their feet screaming and cheering but the game was not over
yet. With a minute and a half left, it was North Penn’s ball. At this point, my
entire team had such an adrenaline rush it was like trying to get past a brick
wall in order to score. North Penn failed at the offensive attempt, and it
returned to our possession. We spread out the pool and passed the ball until
the final buzzer sounded. At this buzzer, the seven girls in the pool swam
together into a massive cheering group hugging and congratulating each other.
This feeling of accomplishment and that minute of swimming towards my teammates
from Wissahickon High School felt like I was on top of the world.
The aftermath of this game was full of energetic hugs
from our supporters in the stand as well as interviews from a local news
company about our victory over the state champs. As the player who scored 7 out
of 8 of my team’s total goals, I was especially in the spotlight and was
awarded a solo interview article about myself published the next day. I can
remember barely even being able to speak throughout the interview due to the
utter disbelief of the game that had just happened. This article is now a proud
accomplishment of the game I am able to look back on and feel such pride for my
team and our fight to victory. This element of team ship is something that has
followed me into my college career, “each girl had their own personal spotlight
on their high school teams thanks to their talent, but now that our team is a
collection of talented players everyone is equal and we are one singular team
rather than many independent players (Diacono).”
It was an extremely significant moment for my team, myself, and the conference we played in. It was able to teach us the values of community, humbleness, and dealing with fame. It was through relying on each other and trusting those involved that we were able to succeed and make a difference. It is a moment that will follow all those present.
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