Following the senior water polo game, Tom Jurczak, head water polo coach, spoke out about each senior and his unique experience working with each one. All the seniors lined up by the pool deck waiting to hear what he had to say about them. Not only did the seniors receive a heartfelt speech, but each senior also received flowers and a gift bag to honor their final home water polo game at Webb. Many seniors used this opportunity to reflect on their time in the water polo program and how much they will miss the sport.
Prior to the celebration, all the juniors, sophomores, and freshmen planned out the event and created posters for each senior. Sophia Scudder (‘21) organized, reached out to the team, and assigned each younger girl to a senior. The posters were creative, fun, and some even included cute, personal inside jokes. Although many of the players had homework to complete, they all got the job done and put in all their effort to assure the seniors had a memorable game.
“The senior game was a little disappointing because we didn’t play as well as we normally do,” said Lydia Toy (‘20). “However, the poster Livia made me was amazing, and it was nice having a last home game with all my girls. The sport is amazing but it’s the people that make all the hard work and pain worth it. I’ll miss Jurczak as well. He’s been one of my favorite coaches I’ve ever had and has inspired so many of us to love water polo as much as he does.”
“I know all the seniors love the sport so much and it would be a lot if they had someone to plan something, so I took it upon myself to plan something special for them,” said Sophia. “This year I got close with a couple of the seniors and everyone knows that they have a big impact on this team, so our entire team is going to miss them very much.”
Not only did the water polo team create posters to celebrate the seniors, but they also organized a spirit day based on the senior’s wishes. Everyone on the team dressed “fancy,” with some taking the opportunity to wear dresses, skirts, and fancy shirts. At lunchtime before the game, the entire team took a photo with the seniors showing off their senior spirit.
“I designed my speeches so that each girl gets a thirty-second speech,” said Mr. Jurczak. “As I started talking about each girl I thought about their contributions to the team and what makes them stand out and how they are unique. For the actual game, I thought we played pretty well despite a couple defensive breakdowns. All in all, I think the seniors get along really well and they truly enjoy the sport of water polo.”
Despite falling short in the game against Mark Keppel High School, the seniors played hard for their last home game. The Gauls will continue to play hard as the season comes to an end and will hopefully make it deep into post-league and even CIF play.
