The massive pool had the cages and boundary lines set up, but it was eerily quiet, with not a ripple to be seen.
Fast-forward five hours, and the scene was quite different. The stands were packed, and fans spilled over into standing-room-only areas. Four teams were in the pool: the varsity boys were playing, and the varsity girls were warming up.
There were officials, coaches, staff and media members all around the deck. There were even several kids peeking through the outer fence, stopping to see the action as they biked by.
If you haven't been to a water polo match, you will be surprised by the fast-paced action and how quickly they transition from one match to the next. During the match, the officials are like symphony conductors. They use a series of hand signals and whistle sounds to communicate fouls or rule infractions without stopping play. Play is continuous, and there is usually a lot of scoring.
A unique aspect of water polo is that all four teams compete consecutively at the same site on the same day. Monday, the order was boys JV, boys varsity, girls varsity, then girls JV. The matches last just under an hour. Another great feature of the new pool is that the teams playing in the next match can get a complete warm-up on the other half of the large pool. There are only about ten minutes between matches, allowing for non-stop action.
The boys' Varsity team handled Granite Bay 18-10. The crowd was into the game early, and the Devils kept the pressure on the entire match. Will Cutler scored seven goals to lead the Blue Devil attack.
The girls' Varsity contest was a rematch of the section finals a year ago. Both teams have been nationally ranked in the top 20 for the past several years. The match was close with the Devils holding a slim 3-2 lead after the first period. The second period was all Blue Devils, scoring six goals and taking a 9-3 lead into halftime. Davis would play solidly in the second half and secure the 15-8 win. Junior Aiva Mann scored four goals, and goalie Hazel Beatty had 11 blocks.
After the great evening in the pool, I was able to sit down and get McGreevy's thoughts on the night. "The new pool was many years in the making, with so many people coming together. The result affirms how special this community is. It is humbling to think of all the students who will benefit for many years to come. This is the definition of Pride."
"Having such a great facility on campus will be so much more accessible for the students, making it easier to get to practice and matches,” Wright said. “The larger pool will help our exceptional swimmers take advantage of their speed and skill. We will finally be able to host playoff matches now with a regulation-sized pool.”
The water polo and swimming programs have achieved historic success. They anchor the most successful athletic program in the Sac-Joaquin Section. Section titles include: boys water polo, 15; girls water polo, 18; boys swimming, 11; and girls swimming, 23. That is an astonishing 67... Click here to read full article
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