It was senior year and we had just lost in the first round of the water polo championships. However, as I looked around at the faces of my team members, I was glad I was not to be the only person that was smiling. We had all become family, and our coach was speaking to us in the fatherly way he always had. He said, “After spending three years with you all, I could not be more proud of the family you all have become.” As we all hugged and congratulated each other, I could not help but ponder how we had gotten to this point.

Anyone who has been on a team before knows that it is not such a simple thing. There is a lot of arguing, fighting, and disagreements. However, once everyone learns how to work together, things begin to get better and relationships form. Although being on a team is difficult, it is worth it once you learn certain lessons. Some lessons you need to learn while being on a team is that the team does not revolve around one or two players, you need to communicate well inside and outside the pool, and you also need to be supportive inside and outside of the pool.

The Team Does Not Rely on One or Two People

As I swam down to the goal with the ball, with a defender quickly approaching me, I suddenly heard my name being called by Kayla. She was alone by the cage, waiting for the ball to make the shot, but I thought I could make the shot all by myself. I forcefully threw the ball at the goal, with the ball flying over it, and me missing the shot. I quickly looked at the disappointment and anger in Kayla’s face. During my sophomore year in high school, my team mate Trinity and I were the ones making the most shots, sometimes being selfish. As time went on, we realized that we would need to rely on our team members rather than just ourselves. In an interview I had with a water polo coach at BYU-Idaho named Gabby Wu, she discussed the importance of playing as a team. “You can't do it on your own. Trust me, I've tried it. You can play the hardest defense and have the most strategic offense, but without support you won't be able to cover all your bases. Teamwork is crucial for success in water polo. It's not the best players that make the team, it's the team as a whole.” My senior year of water polo was finally our most successful season when everybody learned everything about how our team worked, and it proved to be very successful. On one particular occasion, we were battling the most powerful team in our league that we had lost to in many previous games. We worked together in that game like we never had before. Although we lost by one point, I was not disappointed- I was proud. That was the best game we had played together in three years because we all finally used our strengths to form a perfect water polo team puzzle. We put together all our different pieces, and finally fit together. Working as a team is the most important aspect of playing water polo.

Communicating Well Inside and Outside of the Pool

“Will everyone just shut up and leave me alone?” Ginger then ran out of the pool. What had just happened flashed across everyone’s tired, red eyes as our coach called us over to talk. Ginger had been complaining about the two minutes she was put in to play at the end of the game, and saying that she was under appreciated. The rest of our team decided that yelling at her would be the best method of communication to express our frustrations with her. Our coach talked to our whole team, and explained to us that Ginger was being a little dramatic, but that we should have been more supportive rather than cruel to her. Being on a team takes a lot of communication because of all the time you spend together. I was lucky enough to play on a team with the same people for three years, but we were all strangers at one point. It is hard to participate on a team without talking to each other, so you should quickly learn what everyone is like, and how everyone wants to be treated. As I talked to a former male team mate I graduated with named Jeffrey, he told me how vital communication is on a water polo team. He said, “We learned how to communicate by getting to know each other better outside of the pool. One of the ways we did this was going out to eat after tournaments. We would spend the whole day together at the pool, then we would go out to eat and share funny stories about our lives, and things that happened during the games. Hanging out outside of the pool just helped everyone to get to know one another better.” As team mates, you may not always be best friends. However, there must always be mutual respect between one another.

Being Supportive Inside and Outside of the Pool

Although most of us just play water polo during the fall, one of our team mates, Tiffany, also danced on a team. So when Tiffany told us she was not going to be able to play in the game Tuesday because she had to go to dance, we were all kind of angry. “Why is she picking dance over playing on the team? We can’t just lose an important member of the team for such an important game,” complained another team member. As you participate on a team, you learn quickly how to communicate in the pool, but starting friendships outside of the pool is also important. These players do not have to be your best friends, but you should respect one another and check up on each other. Luckily, all my team mates were my good friends. Instead of harassing each other for the other hobbies we participated in, we would help each other with homework before practice so everyone could keep their grades up, and continue to play. We decided to support each other in all aspects of our lives, inside, and outside of the pool.

Being on a water polo team was one of the hardest, but most rewarding things I have ever done. It takes a lot of time and effort, but once you click with your team, you become unstoppable. In order to succeed, you must play as a team, communicate with each other, and support each other in all you do. From my experience, once my team learned how to do all these things, we were very successful together. As I have begun to play with new people in college, I hope to be more successful because of the skills I learned while playing with the same team for three years. Using the three main lessons I learned while in high school, I hope to create an outstanding environment and bond with my team mates as we strive to succeed and win.