With a splash of determination and a dash of skill, the Selma High School Girls Water Polo team dove into the new season, ready to make waves in this year’s league. Led by this year’s new Girls Water Polo coach, Claire Machado.
Although she is a new coach on campus she is not new to this game. She’s been coaching competitive swimming for five years and she wanted to challenge herself by coaching Water Polo. Her love for this sport motivated her to carry on her water polo career to the next level. She attended SHS from 2016-2020 and played on the varsity water polo team for all four years. Her senior year was a memorable one, she was captain and the team won the league as well as being undefeated. Claire’s mindset for getting herself and her team through this season was
“Putting in the work even if you are against good competition, tired, or overwhelmed, things don’t come easy, but putting in the work can get you there,” says Machado.
This sums up the dedication and perseverance of the Selma High School Girls Water Polo team as they strive for excellence in the pool.
What a normal day at practice looks like is running swim drills at practice daily to build endurance. The main drills that help with skill and development at this level are passing and shooting. These are the two components that must be mastered before running plays.
“This could look very different depending on our performance at the previous games, or repeated drills” stated Machado.
It’s crucial to maintain endurance in this sport,
“because missing one day of swimming can set you back weeks,” says Machado.
Swimming is a full-body workout and cardio 24/7. Players just don’t stand in the pool and float. If they’re not swimming to the next end of the pool, they typically sprint and tread water. It’s also a very aggressive sport, which entails constant physical contact and battling for the ball’s position.
In most of their games during the season, many starters played with no subs or man down (one less player is required to play the game, so 6 rather than 7 starting). Although having subs allows the girls to catch a break during games, it’s always important for them to maintain their fatigue. If they’re short on subs, then they just have to stick it out and push through the fatigue.
The physical attributes that come with Water Polo also come with mental toughness. Claire’s way of getting her team across was practicing confidence and patience during passing and shooting drills.
Claire Machado’s overall goal for the season was to see individual improvement in the girls. When her coach left SHS, her first thought was to come back and continue his way of coaching. She knew that she would be starting from scratch and teaching the girls all the basics since it had been a few years without the previous coach, Harold Wood.
“I just wanted the girls to play real polo, feel confident in the pool, and stand a chance against other teams,” says Machado.
Senior players Destiny Rivera #5 and Fatima Aceves #15, have come to an understanding that Water polo is more than just a sport, it’s a passion that has driven them to push into new heights. As they entered their final season with the Selma High School Girls Water polo team, they are determined to leave it all in the pool and build upon new beginnings in their lives. Focusing on the bright future they have ahead of them and continuing with their studies.
With the final whistle, The Girl’s Water polo team celebrated a season of hard work, dedication, and triumph. As they wrapped up their season, they left behind a legacy of teamwork and passion inspiring future generations to dive into the sport. Although they did not make playoffs, the Girl’s Water polo team is already looking towards the future, eager to build on their successes and make waves in the years to come.
