Girls waterpolo begins with a splash

By Jaidev Pant ’21
The girls water polo team started the season off with a record of 10-2 and an undefeated record in the mission league. They won all of their games in the Claremont Tournament and were crowned champions. This tournament helped the team start the season off with a nine game winning streak. They are currently preparing for league opponent, Marymount High School, who they play on Jan. 18. The girls received a coaching change prior to the season, as the previous coach, Brian Flacks, stepped down as the girls coach. He named Emily Greenwood, an assistant to Coach Flacks, the new head coach. However, he still remains the program head. The team adjusted to the coaching change.
“It wasn’t hard because she was our coach during our club season and has been our assistant coach for prior seasons, so she really understands our program and goals,” says attacker Pria Pant ‘18.
 They are led this year by senior captain, Pria Pant, who is the sole senior on the girls team. The team has three freshmen this year, meaning that the team is very young. The Wolverines leading scorer is Meera Burghardt ‘20 with over 50 goals this season.
“We’re really dedicated and we work really hard which has allowed us to have a great start.” attacker Juliette O’Brien said.
They only have ten players this year, making them one of the smallest girls water polo teams ever at the school. On Jan. 9, the school defeated Claremont and it was their biggest win of the season so far.
“Claremont was a big win for us. Not only because they’re ranked #1 in Division III, but because it was our first game back after our first two losses in our season. It was great to see the girls respond to those loses the way they did,” Coach Greenwood said.
The biggest rival of the water polo team is Notre Dame as Notre Dame is their biggest competition in the Mission League. The Wolverines play them on Jan. 30 at Notre Dame High School. The team has set very high goals this year.
“Our goal is to win a CIF championship and to keep our 10 year mission league streak alive,” attacker Abby Wiesenthal ‘20 said.