Graydon Church '18 Recruiting Profile

One of the greatest compliments I’ve received, was to be called a “true waterman”. Growing up in a family of swimmers in Del Mar, it seemed natural to be good at swimming, surfing, skim boarding, paddle boarding, body surfing – pretty much anything to do with surf or sand.  That background has helped me develop an affinity for the ocean and watersports in general. I’ve taken an unusual path to success with waterpolo.  Until recently, it wasn’t my focus, but was only one of the many sports in which I competed. I also enjoyed competitive swimming (medalist in sprint events at JOs), Olympic Sprint Kayaking (medalist at Nationals), volleyball, surfing (medalist in numerous events), bodysurfing (Semifinalist at World Championships), and Junior Lifeguard Competitions (medalist at National Championships).  I enjoyed the variety and cross-training, and appreciated the opportunity to develop so many friendships with my various teammates.

Becoming a varsity starter as a high school freshman is what hooked me on water polo and made me decide to finally specialize and focus on just the one sport.  As luck would have it, I then broke by elbow after the high school season, which kept me out of club polo until my sophomore season. I have since made significant improvements and this past season as a senior, I was honored to lead my team to be the League Champions and to the CIF D3 Championship game.  I was also honored to be named Athlete of the Year for the league, 1^st Team All-City League, MVP and team captain.  I love the intensity of the training required for water polo, the physicality of the sport, and the mental awareness needed during games. I do regret not beginning this sport earlier, but it does feel great hearing from multiple coaches that I still have uncapped crazy potential with the size, speed and athletic ability to compete at this next higher level.