This feature originally appeared in the 2022 Fall edition of the Cal Sports Quarterly. The Cal Athletics flagship magazine features long-form sports journalism at its finest and provides in-depth coverage of the scholar-athlete experience in Berkeley. Printed copies are mailed four times a year to Bear Backers who give annually at the Bear Club level (currently $600 or more). For more information on how you can receive a printed version of the Cal Sports Quarterly at home, send an email to CalAthleticsFund@berkeley.edu or call (510) 642-2427.




Nikolaos Papanikolaou was already keeping opposing water polo coaches up at night.

It turns out their insomnia may just be getting started.

Papanikolaou won the Peter J. Cutino Award as the top player in NCAA water polo last season and was also named the ACWPC National Player of the Year, all while leading the Cal men's water polo team to the 2021 NCAA championship.

But Papanikolaou did all that while being held out of practice for most of the season. And he says the time he's spent since winning the national title has been the hardest he's ever worked at his craft.

"I honestly feel bad for the other teams," teammate Garrett Dunn said. "It's scary."

Papanikolaou was arguably the most dominant force in the college game last season. He led the ultra-competitive MPSF with 68 goals and 35 steals while registering a staggering 112 earned exclusions. He was also named the MPSF Player of the Year for the second straight year.

But Papanikolaou injured his shoulder early in the season and was limited to just swimming and conditioning in practice.

"I thought that was pretty impressive – his ability to play at that level without consistent reps every day," said Cal head coach Kirk Everist, the 2021 ACWPC National Coach of the Year. "We didn't want to risk the contact in practice."

Papanikolaou finally started joining his teammates in practice for the postseason and expectedly played a huge role in the Bears' run to their 15th NCAA crown. He was named the most valuable player of the NCAA Championship after Cal defeated USC 13-12 in the title match.

Papanikolaou helped turn back the Trojans' final chance to tie the game as time ran out with a field block as the horn sounded, setting off an epic celebration at UCLA's Spieker Aquatic Center.

"The first few minutes, I couldn't really believe it," Papanikolaou said. "I touched the ball and watched it go out, and then saw the time say zero. My teammates are my friends that I spend so much time with hanging out away from the pool. Winning with your friends makes everything more satisfying."

Papanikolaou's reaction to his game-saving field block was part disbelief, part elation. It was a rare display of emotion for the usually stoic center. In the rough-and-tumble game of water polo, it's easy for emotions to run high. But Papanikolaou always portrays a sense of calm, despite the fact that he's the overwhelming target of almost every opponent's attention.

"It's a trait that's very helpful for his position," Everist said. "You got guys hanging all over you all the time trying to play physical, trying to get you off your game. Being able to not react to everything because there are just so many times that you could get flustered or frustrated or angry – the best ones tend to just kind of go through it and just keep going."

Papanikolaou's demeanor in the pool can be traced back to his days playing club ball in his hometown of Athens, Greece. He started water polo at age 9 and it was quickly evident that he was stronger and faster than most of the other players in the pool. When he joined the club ANC Glyfada at the age of 16, club director Dimitris Mazis immediately pulled him up from the under-17 team to the Under-19 team.

"I went to one of his practices and watched him. I asked, 'Who is this guy?'" Mazis said. "They said he's very good and a very promising guy. I said, 'Next week, the senior team is starting practice. I want this guy to practice with the senior team.'"

Two years later, Papanikolaou put the water polo world on notice when he was named the most valuable player of the 2018 FINA Youth World Championships in Szombately, Hungary, while leading Greece to the gold medal. NCAA coaches especially noticed, and Papanikolaou began getting courted by some of the top programs in the country.

Several top Greek players had already made their way to Berkeley in the past. Papanikolaou, who said he never considered coming to the U.S. for college until after his MVP performance at Worlds, began to take an interest in coming to Cal.

"It seemed like a hassle to go to the U.S. It was so far," Papanikolaou said. "I was used to my life in Greece. But I just woke up one day in January and was like, 'I want to do this.' It was like a New Year's Resolution. I had heard of Berkeley's academics, so I chose to come here."

Papanikolaou had never been to the U.S., and his college career got off to a sleepy start. After a delay getting his visa, Papanikolaou had to buy a last-minute plane ticket to San Francisco. It took 23 hours, and Papanikolaou didn't sleep a wink.

Everist picked him up at the airport and immediately drove him to Dunn's parents house in Lafayette, where Papanikolaou stayed for three days before he and
Garrett moved in together at Blackwell Hall. His future teammate, fellow Greek Nikos Delagrammatikas, was also there.

"I got to Garrett's house and they had a dinner arranged," Papanikolaou said. "They were excited, and I was so tired. I couldn't really speak English. Nikos kept on
speaking because he understood I didn't want to talk."

It was immediately apparent that Papanikolaou had a chance to be one of the rare difference-makers that can significantly alter the course of a program. He was named MPSF Newcomer of the Year as a freshman and then really exploded on to the scene as a sophomore, earning ACWPC First Team All-American honors and being named a finalist for the Cutino Award while also getting tabbed as the MPSF Player of the Year. He also helped the Bears reach the semifinals of the NCAA Championship.

But it was 2021, when he was as a junior, that became Papanikalou's crowning achievement – literally – and, for now. Announcements for all of the postseason honors he earned were really anticlimactic. Anyone who followed NCAA men's water polo last season knew they were foregone conclusions.

"I feel blessed that I get to play with him," Dunn said. "Every time I get in the pool, I'm with one of my best friends. But it's also a huge honor to play with him. He's going to go down amongst some of the greatest water polo players ever."

Despite his success last season, Papanikolaou says he spent the past offseason working harder than he ever has on his game. With accolades comes expectations – and a fear of letting others down.

"After last season when we won, in the spring I haven't worked like that since I've been in the U.S.," Papanikolaou said. "I believe there's a lot of hype how I'm playing, and I kind of want to justify it and just know that I deserve it. I want to know that I've actually put a lot of work and effort into it, and I actually deserve to receive those accolades. It's really pushed me to work harder."

Papanikalou is now a senior, but plans on utilizing his COVID waiver that will grant him an extra year of eligibility and allow him to play in 2023 as well. At his current pace, he should go down as one of the best – if not the best – the college game has ever seen.

"He's one of those players that don't come around that often," Everist said. "You win a player of the year award, you're definitely in the preseason equation for the next couple of years. A lot has to happen. The team needs to be successful. He has to stay healthy. He has to work hard and be ready to compete on a daily basis and have that consistency, like he did last year when pretty much every game he made an impact."