When the California women's water polo team opens its 2024 schedule Saturday at Fresno State's Polo-Palooza, it will carry its usual expectations of being one of the nation's most competitive teams into a new season.

Their preseason preparations leading into this year, however, were not so usual. Just one week prior to the start of the new season, the Bears returned from a 12-day excursion to Greece which saw them train and travel all along the Athens coast.

"We really capitalized on a great trip. The team got to dive in and get to know one another in a lot of different ways," Cal head coach Coralie Simmons said. "We got to play some solid, competitive games in amazing venues against teams that play a different style of water polo. It was great preparation for things to come and, more than anything else, we experienced a new way of playing the game and learning some skill sets we don't necessarily see here."

The Bears' trip was centralized in the beautiful town of Vouliagmeni, located towards the southwest corner of the Attica peninsula. While much of the focus revolved around their scheduled competitions with the Greek U19 national team and clubs Ethnikos, Panionios and Vouliagmeni, there was also an emphasis on building team camaraderie through the cultural appreciation of the many historical sites and venues close by.

"We were able to get into Athens and check out museums and ancient sites. We went to Acropolis and the Olympic Stadium, so we had a nice balance of culture and playing water polo," Simmons said. "I thought we did a really good job of being flexible and getting to see your close teammates in a different realm."

While preseason bonding has typically included retreats and training much closer to home, taking a trip across the globe brought its own unique positives and challenges.

"I think we were tested with travel. It always brings a nice element of surprise and teaches us how to adapt and adjust," said Simmons. "We're challenged here in Berkeley with school and polo. But getting on the road, navigating airports and sticking together, then getting through cold water polo sessions on the coast, playing in the sea and just growing and building is definitely very unique compared to other years. This really put us in the blender of doing amazing things together and working through both fun and hard moments."

A big reason why the Bears are once again a favorite to return to the NCAA Tournament is the presence of fifth-year senior goalkeeper Isabel Williams, who is coming off a season where she was named to the Cutino Award Watch List and earned her second straight ACWPC All-America selection. Also back in the lineup are key starters from last season in 2023 All-MPSF selection Maryn Dempsey and defenders Rozanne Voorvelt and Mallory Reynoso.

Some notable additions to Cal's offense include UC Irvine transfer and two-time All-American Elena Flynn, as well as freshmen Julia Bonaguidi and Feline Voordouw. Bonaguidi competed in an exhibition series with the USA Water Polo Senior National squad in 2023, while Voordouw has seen significant time competing with the Netherlands Youth National Team for the past five years.

"I think the experience that we'll have with different units in the water is unmatched," Simmons said. "The chemistry with our combos will be exciting. They have a lot of energy and excitement coming into the season, so I think with our upperclassmen and newbies, we're going to turn some heads and bring a fun layer to our 2024 season."

Simmons and the Bears have competed in five of the last six NCAA Championships, a run that includes four semifinal appearances. They enter the 2024 season with a No. 4 preseason national ranking (ACWPC), making it 14 straight years that they will start with a top-4 national ranking.

Cal will get its first tests against Division I competition with four games against nationally ranked teams this weekend, including top-5 programs UC Irvine and Hawaii.

"We're keeping a little momentum from our trip and the excitement of our season starting. We're going to see some great teams this weekend," said Simmons. "It'll be a good challenge for us coming off a trip and a great way for us to see where we're at as a squad. I think we have a team that really makes adjustments, competes at a very high level and really enjoys the nature of competition and we're excited to battle with some great teams this weekend."

 

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