Ariana Zhao ’25 looks to bypass the opponent’s defense.
On Saturday, Girls Water Polo faced Loomis Chaffee (Loomis) and Choate Rosemary Hall (Choate) in a doubleheader. The team, on Wednesday, defeated Phillips Exeter Academy (Exeter) in a thrilling, overtime victory. Though both games on Saturday got pushed back due to weather conditions, the team stayed positive and pushed through fatigue to play its hardest. The team preserved through fatigue on Saturday and tough competition on Wednesday, showing its determination and toughness.
The team also has learned to keep its cool during tight situations and to slow down mentally on offense. Sophia You ’26 commented on how the team has learned to be patient and to find good opportunities and subsequently reward them.
“Something we did well was just staying calm and collected. Before as a team where we would get frustrated a bit if things weren’t going our way or when we wouldn’t know what to do, we would throw the ball. But now we’re getting really good at identifying opportunities and rewarding them. Also, we’ve gotten better at being patient and not making any hasty decisions,” You said.
Similarly, Co-Captain Ariana Zhao ’25 cited an increase in team morale and focus over the weekend.
“We were just very positive. We had a lot of fun on Saturday. It was a long day because we got some delays due to the weather and games being pushed back. I thought we were always pretty positive; we adapted pretty well. Both of the teams that we played, played pretty differently. So we adapted our defense well. We did a good job with keeping cool, doing what we do, and not worrying too much,” said Zhao.
A consistent work ethic has differentiated the team with players not shying away from working extra hard to get the team a win. You highlighted her teammate Addison Deng ’26 who left everything in the pool to help the team win after an exhausting day on Saturday.
“Addison Deng did a good job. For the second game, we were all really tired. But she made sure to counter hard every single time, and she did a lot of extra swimming, even though she was already tired from before,” You said.
Adding on to what You said, Camden Schopler ’27 commented on the drive of the team and the fact that no one is afraid of making a mistake, since they know they will make it up on defense.
“Everybody works really hard, if anybody has the ball, they are gonna shoot it. Nobody’s afraid to shoot, a lot of other teams have issues where some of the players won’t shoot because they’re afraid to miss but everybody on the team is willing to shoot or miss. They will match up with anybody on defense,” said Schopler.
This Wednesday the team earned each success in their game against Exeter, having been down the majority of the game. Schopler commented on what the team learned from that win and how they fought back.
“It was pretty tense, we were down by three in the beginning, three to zero, but we got it back up, then we were down by one before we went into overtime and then we were down again and then shot and won,” said Schopler. She continued “Just have a positive mindset and play your hardest throughout the entirety, because we were losing at multiple points during the game, but in the end we pulled out and won the game.”
Wednesday’s win against Exeter was pivotal for the team before playoffs, where they worked together seamlessly. Schopler elaborated on her excitement for the upcoming games and overtaking teams with her team’s unity.
“I’m really looking forward to having us all play together because today’s game was very good for the team, we really worked hard together and had one mind. Everyone was on the same page so I’m excited to use that to overcome games,” Schopler said.
The team will face Deerfield Academy and Hopkins on Saturday.
