Water polo plays with no pool

The new season has brought some changes for Aragon’s water polo team, with a different pool being but one of them.

Due to Aragon’s ongoing pool renovation, the water polo team has been practicing at CSM. Though its distance from Aragon causes some inconvenience, the pool at CSM has been for the most part a benefit. “CSM’s [large] pool is nice, and is helping us with spacing. It gives us a lot more to work with,” says junior Aaron Kim.

Fellow junior Gabe Hargis says, “The pool is really clean. It’s a much nicer pool than we ever had and will possibly ever have at Aragon.”

Furthermore, the Aragon’s boys varsity move to the Ocean division from the Bay division has left the “playing field… more even,” according to junior Blake Tandowsky. However, Aragon still faces much competition, particularly from strong schools including Terra Nova and Half Moon Bay.

Yet for the most part, water polo for the Dons remains largely unchanged. Practices are still grueling in what Hargis calls “the hardest sport in the world,” and a high commitment level is required to continue playing on the team. Throughout practice, teammates not only build their stamina and dexterity through going over plays, but also give and receive input on their plays and performance.

This balance of teamwork and cooperation are important, and are huge team goals for the season. During practice, three year boys varsity coach Arjuna “June” Manning-Laisne tells the team, “[You’re] not using talent to get you a goal. [You’re] using offense to get a goal.

Similarly, when asked about the balance between talent and communication, girls varsity coach Nick Gonzales says, “[They’ve] got to come hand to hand. One without the other, [and] you’re not going to be too successful.

This success has paid off even in the early stages of the season. On Saturday’s game, Aragon’s boys varsity team played Hillsdale, emerging victorious with a score of 7-6. The Dons played clean, with no rollouts, few ejections, and most fouls coming from Hillsdale. Moreover, their practice in teamwork was visible; the Dons made multiple goals through assists, including one goal in which Hillsdale’s players could not keep up with the web of players the ball was being rallied around.
After the game, an impassioned Coach Manning-Laisne stated “[The] teamwork was awesome. [It] was the best all year.”

Manning Laisne adds that in the end, the Dons outdid Hillsdale through their stamina from strenuous practices and depth as a team.

Though they have only played one league game this season, the girl’s varsity team also appears to be starting the season strong. Coming home from the Aptos Invitational tournament this weekend, the girls lost one game, but won against Santa Clara, Aptos, and Foothill. Senior Miya Oto says the team consists of a “really large experienced” class of varsity veterans, alongside some underclassmen. The girls varsity team, has been doing well by through its team bonding inside and outside of the pool.

Above all else, Aragon’s water polo teams are succeeding in the defining aspect that many teams ironically fail to conceive – becoming a team. As Coach Manning-Laisne says, “Sports are really about becoming a team and [that kind of] atmosphere.”

And with that, a fresh season awaits.