Personal Statement
I went to my first water polo game when I was around 10 years old. My brother was a goalie for his high school, so my parents, especially my dad, always made me tag along. I did not understand what the game really was, but my father wanted to make sure I could support my brother as he played. I would come to tournaments with my father hundreds of miles away to watch my brother play, and he would film every game for him so that he could critique himself and that colleges could use it as reference. The more and more tournaments I went to, the more and more my father wanted me to play water polo. I was a swimmer, but wrestling people in water and chucking balls was never something I really considered.
When I was 12, my parents signed me up for EPIC Water Polo, a little club in my hometown, Erie PA, run by a coach from Greece, that took place in a dingy pool. I was nervous to start, but my father was extremely excited to see me play because he thought it would bring me as much joy as it did to my brother. I was one of the only middle schoolers there, so I was very nervous around all of the high school players, but my father would come to every practice and watch to see me improve.
By the time I was 13, I was able to go to my first tournament. I remember just how nervous and shaky I was! My father told me he wanted me to do well so that I could be experienced when I got to play in high school. I ended up scoring my first ever goal, and I’ll never forget how happy my father looked. After the game he gave me a big hug and told me how proud he was of me, and that motivated me to get better and better at the sport.
When I was almost 14 years old, my dad got a heart attack and died suddenly. I remember the event so vividly, but what I remember more was not being able to see him in the stands at my games. I would look up in the stands to see him, but then reality hit that I would have to play without him. I decided to dedicate all of my games for him, because I knew even though I couldn’t see him, my dad was looking down on me. I’ll never forget my freshman year of high school when I scored the winning backhand in my JV game against Cumberland Valley, and my teammates‘ mother told me my father would be so proud of how much I have grown as a player.
I hope that I can continue this growth during my college career to honor my dad who helped me get into the sport that I know and love. I know that he would be so happy to know I want to pursue water polo at a collegiate level, and that he would be so proud of how much I have grown as a player.
