With only two years of experience in the sport, Hunger is the team’s leading golascorer.
“He’s supportive and if you’re doing something wrong, he actually takes the time to help you and point out what you’re doing wrong, but also show you ways to improve…he puts in so much time and effort trying to [make the team] better…Even though it’s not his main sport, he still spends so much time on it. He pushes so hard and gives his all in practice. Even with the younger members of the team, he is still so supportive,” McKee said.
Hunger’s offensive skills and ability to adapt has earned him the accolade of The Phillipian’s Athlete of the Week.
Why did you start playing?
Because [Water Polo] is a mix of two of my long-time favorite sports: swimming and hockey. Overall compared to endurance sports such as swimming, which is my main sport, it’s just a fun enjoyable experience where you can bond with the team in ways that individual sports can’t.
What are your individual goals and goals for the team?
As an individual player, [I want to] slowly improve, get more comfortable. For the team, I really believe that because we don’t have much recruiting for the sport, we need to train the people we have into a more knowledgeable force on water polo, myself included. When people arrive here and have no idea what water polo is; my goal is to teach people how to be comfortable in their positions and how to make them improve. Overall, [I want everyone to] be better players, have more fun, and enjoy the sport because the future of the program depends on our lowerclassmen.
Do you have any team traditions that you do before games?
Usually, before major games such as Phillips Exeter Academy or playoff games, we’ll have the entire team dress up nice and fancy. Kind of give us a reason to be motivated and excited for the next day. People will ask ‘what’s the occasion?’, [and] you can psych up the water polo game and get people to come.
Who are your biggest supporters?
I think my teammates support me tremendously, and my family keeps encouraging me to do the things I love. Everybody who surrounds me in water polo are the people who encourage me to move forward.
If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
I think it would be the ability to teleport. I love seeing the world and exploring places, and the one thing that sucks for me is traveling on an airplane. As a very tall person, leg space is a big issue and so having the superpower of being able to teleport removes this very uncomfortable part of traveling. [a]
