Posted on: Thursday, May 12, 2005
Reaching a high-water mark
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
Hawai'i is ranked among the top four in water polo for the first time since its inaugural season in 1998. Going into the National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championship tomorrow in Ann Arbor, Mich., the Rainbow Wahine now have to believe they belong.
The 'Bows (20-9) have been ranked fourth nationally the last six weeks, rising in the midst of a 14-match win streak. But the obstacles ahead are ominous:
Photos by Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser • Top-ranked and top-seeded UCLA (30-0) has five Olympians, and everyone's rapt attention as the team to beat. • Second-seeded USC (23-4) is following up on the first undefeated season in women's water polo's brief NCAA history. • Third-seeded Stanford (20-6) reached the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation final by upsetting the Trojans behind a remarkable 19-save performance from U.S. Junior National Team goalie Meridith McColl. "Now," says Meike De Nooy, Hawai'i's first-year goalie, "we just have to believe we can beat these people."
The 6-foot-1 sophomore from the Netherlands chose UH over a third-try acceptance into a prestigious art academy at home. De Nooy's artistry is now confined to the pool, where she has allowed just six goals a game. That's third-best in the MPSF, which is supplying half the national tournament's eight teams.
De Nooy is one of five international players who joined the 'Bows after their first trip, following huge international events. The season-defining streak came soon after, with freshmen Iefke Van Belkum (The Netherlands) and Morika Kruszona (Germany) joining senior Beth Novick among the MPSF's top-10 scorers.
Novick, recently invited to try out for the U.S. national team, is missing graduation to play in Hawai'i's first official national tournament. The 'Bows were fourth in 1998, when the finals were not NCAA-sanctioned. Coach Michel Roy says Novick's game is now at a "world-class level."
"We're losing a girl that is 6-1, 185 pounds, who can swim the whole game and fight constantly," Roy says with regret. "That's very demanding."
If the team's diversity had volume, it would be deafening. Roy, the MPSF co-Coach of the Year, is 65-47 in his third season since coming over from the Canadian National program. His roster, including red-shirts, has nine international players. Four more, from Canada, New Zealand and Australia, are on their way over next season. The Americans are from five states.
With its full, multi-national roster this season, Hawai'i is 16-3. It took time for the chemistry to click, but probably not as much as most would expect.
According to Novick, the awkwardness of the late influx of players was eased by their awareness of the situation and obvious talent. The experience and "game speed" they brought has been invaluable.
"They fused perfectly," Novick says. "The level of competition (on the team) has increased because girls have come in with more knowledge and more motivation and they are more independently motivated. We need to feed off that energy. Because of that, a lot of the girls stepped up."
But first, the nationals. Roy believes his team secured its at-large bid by beating Long Beach State in the MPSF Tournament. The 'Bows tied the game with 14 seconds left and won in overtime.
"A 14-second season," Roy says, shaking his head at the suddeness of it all. The nationals will be faster and more furious than anything the 'Bows have seen before. They can't afford to be a splash late.
"The big thing is reaction time," De Nooy says. "Seeing things, thinking ahead. Not just a little ahead but two steps ahead. Planning instead of waiting to see what happens."
Adds Roy: "This was my goal. We've had a great year. We understand now that we can be competitive. Understand we have a shot at this."
Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8043.
• Hawai'i opens against seventh-ranked Loyola Marymount (27-6), which fell to Southern California in last year's national final. LMU has two Olympians and led UH 5-3 after three quarters in a game this year. The 'Bows flooded the net with six fourth-quarter goals to win, 9-6.
Meike De Nooy, a sophomore from the Netherlands, is among several international players who have helped the University of Hawai'i achieve a 20-9 record and earn a berth in the National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championships, starting tomorrow in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Novick is the program's first two-time all-MPSF first-team selection. Van Belkum is on the second team and Kruszona honorable mention.
Senior Beth Novick has been playing at a "world-class level," according to Rainbow Wahine coach Michel Roy.
Roy believes his team is "a step above in every aspect" from last season. Novick calls it "a level I've not been around before." The coach promises more next year.
