KRISTIN PATTERSON | staff writer
What was the deciding factor in your choice for a college? Was it the school’s academic reputation, scholarship package or athletics program? Everyone has different criteria that are vital in their decision-making process.
For water polo team assistant captain and senior biology major Julia Shotwell, that criteria didn’t match up with Azusa Pacific University.
“I almost didn’t want to come here because there was no water polo team,” Shotwell said. “Water polo is a passion of mine, and a big deciding factor [in the college-choosing process].”
This school year marks the beginning of Azusa Pacific’s first water polo team.
With 14 girls on their roster, the team is looking forward to a great season with Head Coaches Robert Fleming and Jeff Lee.
Fleming, an APU alumnus, was formerly the water polo coach at Citrus College.
Shotwell played water polo in high school and planned on playing in college.
Junior communication studies major Chelsea Ching and sophomore liberal studies major Melissa Morris also played during high school and gave up the sport when they came to a college with no team.
In years past, students who wanted to play water polo had to turn to Citrus.
“A lot of girls from APU would go play for Citrus. They would sign up for classes there so they could be on the team,” Shotwell said,
Fleming noticed the influx of Azusa Pacific students on the Citrus team. “He really saw the need for an APU team,” Shotwell said.
Fleming discussed the possibility of starting a team with good friend Terry Franson, Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students.
“Terry is the one who lit Robert’s fire and persuaded him to get the Aquatics Program started,” Shotwell said.
The team believe some things are more important than winning.
“Winning isn’t everything,” Shotwell said, “Even if we don’t win, we have fun. No matter what the score is, we’re just going to play hard and have a good time.”
Shotwell is optimistic about water polo’s chances of winning.
“Our girls have a lot of potential,” Ching said, “Right now, we’re just adapting to each other’s playing and becoming unified as a team. But, I expect to win.”
“It’s hard for any team to be the first,” Morris said, “The first year is just a building year. We’re getting to know one another and how we play. We’re building chemistry as a team. That’s the challenge, but we’re working on it.”
“We’re being watched, there’s more pressure, since we are the first team. However, the team doesn’t seem too worried about it. We’re just going to have fun,” Ching said.
The team is very intentional about what they do.
“We’re very conscious of how we play, because we’re representing APU out there, and we’re representing Christ,” Shotwell said.
The team will play their next game on Wednesday, February 11 at Cal Baptist.
