Women’s water polo ‘thankful’ to return to the pool

The Chapman women’s water polo team is among three spring sports — along with women’s golf and softball — to be confirmed to restart play this spring. Panther Archives

The high-pitched blaring of the buzzer. The splashes of bodies thrashing in water. The soft swish of a yellow ball hitting the back of a net.

They’re all sounds that haven’t been heard coming from the Zee Allred Aquatics Center in nearly a year. But now, they’ll echo across the water once more.  

Add Chapman women’s water polo to the list of spring sports that will resume their season in March. The team will be playing a shortened season with only the University of Redlands and California Lutheran University opting to compete in Chapman’s conference, the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). 

Unlike softball and golf, the program has yet to receive a concrete schedule and hasn’t set a fixed number on the amount of games they’ll play. That’s something that worries Eric Ploessel, head coach of the women’s water polo team. 

“(When) I get the actual, official schedule then I can start booking other teams within the NCAA,” Ploessel said. “I think even (Chapman) baseball is playing a couple of Division II teams ... That’s what I’ll do.” 

Women’s water polo had their first team activity Feb. 15, conditioning in pods of nine — a system they’ve been operating in for the first two weeks of the season. Before their first workout, players like junior attacker Charlene Ma have been training on their own by doing home exercises. However, Ma believes there will be an adjustment period for athletes to get back into playing form.

“It sucks to only practice for an hour everyday as opposed to practicing the whole two hours for the first two weeks,” Ma said. “Everyone is slowly getting back into shape, but it definitely is slowing us down a little bit getting back into the season.”

The primary issue comes with the sport being played in water, as many pools have been largely closed during the pandemic. Sophomore attacker Camille Chiang was also stuck with home workouts, limited to the confines of her bedroom or a local park. 

“Water polo is a hard sport to keep in shape, because pool space is hard to get,” Chiang said. “In the fall, we weren’t allowed to use balls or anything to be passing and shooting, so water polo-wise, I think we’re a little behind.” 

While they are back at practice, given the “pod” format, the entire team can’t practice at the same time. However, Ploessel says they will be reuniting March 1, when the 18 members of the team can practice as a group with equipment. The team can start playing with contact and scrimmaging March 15, he said. 

Leading up to the first practice, the water polo team met several times over Zoom to discuss players' feelings about participating this upcoming season. Some players were uncomfortable and decided to opt out. However, Ploessel is confident in the processes set up for players who did choose to return to compete. 

“The first week went really well,” Ploessel said. “They’re out of shape, but it’s good for them. That’s why we have all these stages in place to actually get them ready for games a month from now.”

Ultimately, the group is optimistic about the upcoming season. 

“I’m definitely thankful to have a season and to be able to play, because I know a lot of teams are missing out,” Ma said. “I am looking forward to being together as a team. Obviously playing games is going to be exciting … our team is really close and I’m looking forward to bonding with everyone.”