When you combine Bob the bus driver, Journey music videos, assistant coach Derek Ellingson on the seat drums, assistant coach Serela Kay on the air piano and head coach Luis Nicolao on lead vocals, there is no way the women’s water polo team cannot get fired up for its away matches. “Nothing gets us pumped more than some 1980s air piano,” senior driver and tri-captain Helen Meigs said.
The women’s water polo team enjoys several fun and wacky traditions that make being a part of the team that much more special. Princeton (20-10 overall, 5-1 Southern Collegiate Water Polo Association) finished the season taking third place at the Eastern Championships. The Tigers knocked out rival No. 19 Bucknell (17-11, 5-1) in the first round of Easterns, only to fall to eventual tournament champion No. 7 Michigan (32-6) in the semifinal. Princeton bounced back to beat No. 11 Hartwick (25-6) for the first time in four years to steal the third-place trophy from the Eagles.
The season had its ebbs and flows for the Tigers, but in the end, the Tigers are content with the result.
“We obviously went into Easterns with the goal of winning,” Meigs said. “But even when we found ourselves in the third-place game, nobody let up in intensity. Instead of getting down now that NCAAs was out of reach, everyone still came out with awesome energy.”
This resilience was seen throughout the year for the Tigers. For example, Princeton faced Brown three times this season, outplaying the Bears (19-15) in two of the three games but losing the ECAC Championship to them. The following weekend, the Tigers flew out to Bloomington, Ind., to avenge the loss at home and beat them 7-5.
The Tigers faced their arch rival Bucknell four times this year, managing to split the hard-fought meetings with two wins and two losses. The Bison stole the Southern Championship title from Princeton, beating the Tigers in DeNunzio Pool, only to get knocked out of Easterns by the Tigers the very next weekend.
Princeton was led by three senior tri-captains this season. Driver Phoebe Champion led the team in scoring with 57 goals and recorded 27 assists and 26 steals. Driver Carolina Ardila started 29 of 30 games for Nicolao and provided all-around support, scoring 26 goals, drawing 36 ejections and recording 19 steals. And Meigs led the team in assists, dropping 45 dimes while scoring 31 goals and commanding Princeton’s man-advantage offense.
The senior leaders shared the wealth with the underclassman. Freshman driver Brittany Zwirner had a break-out year scoring 50 goals, including three in Princeton’s third-place Eastern Championships win over Hartwick. Junior utility Lauren Brunner and freshman center Saranna Soroka caused headaches for opposing coaches all season, dominating the inside game for Princeton. Brunner tallied 38 goals and 34 drawn ejections, while Soroka put in 24 goals herself and drew a team-high 45 ejections. Defensively, the Tigers were anchored by sophomore goalie Kristen Ward and junior defender Tanya Wilcox. Ward made 242 saves, while Wilcox shut down opposing centers inside.
The coaches for the Tigers were a big part of the team’s success. All three of them command respect from their coaching peers, referees, team parents and, especially, the players.
“Luis kept us laughing all year with his endless repertoire of jokes and witty banter,” Meigs said.
“Serela pushed us much harder than past years with her wacky workouts, and then showed us we’re still sissies by working out twice as hard,” Brunner said.
“Derek’s presence at bagel-less morning practices always raised our spirits because you knew that no matter how bummed you were at being awake and in the pool at 6:30 a.m., someone else was struggling even more,” Meigs said.
With those three coaches at the helm, Princeton had a powerful trifecta of motivation.
The Tigers continued their tradition of hard work, success and fun this season. The water polo program at Princeton is viewed among the water polo community as one of the greatest families in the country. But this year, whether it was playing air piano or scoring on its opponents, the women’s water polo team rocked on a regular basis.
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