2022-23 Year in Review

With our summer session behind us, I have been afforded the time to reflect on this past year and am filled with enormous pride and gratitude. I am incredibly thankful to all the athletes who have made us the largest water polo club in Oregon. With over 160 kids participating in our program this last year, we are pleased with our role in the continuous growth of water polo in the Northwest region. Once again we were a constant presence on pool decks across Oregon, fielding over 50 teams in the many local tournaments offered this year.

l am beyond grateful for all of our parents who have been extremely flexible and accommodating to late practice times and long car rides and who have volunteered so much of their time to support the staff and create this incredible sense of community. I’d also like to extend a big thank you to administrator Corrin Beaumont, parent chair Chris Alexander, and our entire coaching staff for their commitment to our kids and our mission to provide intentional training sessions daily.

A few highlights from the last few months:

• In January, our 12U mixed team went to Marin, CA and went 4-1 in the Marin Winter Classic.
• In February, our 16U boys attended the KAP7 International tournament in Orange County to compete against some of the best teams in the country.
• In April, 15 of our 14U girls went on a road trip to Washington to train with the Bainbridge and Rain City girls’ teams. This trip included a ferry ride, pizza party, boba, fro-yo, and lots of fun!
• In May, our 14U boys and 14U girls teams traveled to San Diego to compete in the San Diego County Cup, the second-largest youth tournament in the country. Both teams gained valuable experience, with the boys finishing 5-1 and the girls getting their first opportunity to compete in an all-girls division.

June was a very exciting time for the club:

• We started by fielding five teams (14U/16U girls and 12U/14U/16U boys) for the Pacific Northwest Zone Junior Olympic Qualifiers being hosted at Mt. Hood by Blue Crush. Each of our five teams placed in the top three of our region, with our 14U boys and 16U boys taking first place. As a result of our successful weekend, all of our teams qualified for the Championship division for the following month’s Junior Olympic tournament.
• The following week, our 16U boys spent eight days in Southern California. The first half of the trip consisted of scrimmaging local teams and playing lots of Spikeball at the beach while the second half was spent playing in the highly competitive Club Championships. They capped off the trip with a fun day at the Knott’s Berry Farm amusement park.
• Wrapping up our summer session, LOWPO traveled to Orange County to compete in the 2023 Junior Olympics, the largest youth tournament in the world. Each of our five teams collected wins, competing hard each game and embodying the grit and effort we are striving towards as a club. The highlight of the tournament for me was seeing our teams travel all over Orange County to cheer each other on. I believe the camaraderie demonstrated throughout this event will carry on and strengthen the community we are building.

Once again, all we have accomplished could not have been done without the help of you all. While this year was something I am very proud of, I believe this to be just the beginning. We will continue to reflect and seek out ways to improve our program.

Best of luck to all HS athletes in their fall season. For all age group athletes, please keep an eye out for our fall session as we have some fun opportunities coming up.

 

Sincerely,

Coach Daniel