Ready… Set… Go…. As the referee blew into his whistle, YLHS water polo girls took off after the ball. The crowd cheered on the girls, and the girls shouted words of encouragement to their teammates. Slowly, but surely, YLHS girls took the lead over Fullerton girls in a tense back and forth match. On the 4th of December, YLHS women’s water polo team, excluding varsity, had their first water polo game of the season. It was at 3:15pm in the Yorba Linda High School Aquatics Center against Fullerton. Melody Saba (11) recalls the match as, “ a good way to start the season because we won 10-2.”

Women’s water polo starts in the winter season which is from December to February. This sport, much like many other sports, is split into three groups of proficiency: Fresh/Soph, JV, and Varsity. Each level of proficiency plays against another team from another school in a game separated by 4 quarters of eight minutes. The main objective is to throw the most amount of balls into the opponent’s goal.  The game usually takes place in deep water, around seven feet, and tests the athlete’s ability of endurance, skill, and agility.

To get ready for the game, the women’s water polo team practice several times a week for long period of hours. On Mondays and Tuesdays, these girls practice from 7:30 pm to 9:00pm. On the other hand, Wednesdays to Fridays practice is at 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. As can be seen the girls puts in several hours of dedication and hard work to succeed. Before a match, the coaches make sure that every athlete takes several warm up laps around the pool and practice shooting before the game.

Water polo is one of the many sports that Yorba Linda High School is proud to provide.  The Yorba Linda High School Girls water program was one of the few sports that has been part of YLHS since the opening of the school. When the program first began, it was a Division 6 sport, but earned its way the Century Conference. Century Conference is comprised of the North Hills League and the Crestview League. Both leagues are very competitive and hosts multiple schools and multiple districts.

Make sure to support YLHS women’s water polo team on upcoming games such as: the game against Cerritos on December 18 and or the game on January 8 against Estancia. Good luck girls!