Slowly we’re returning to some sort of normal. Not quite, but there are some encouraging signs. Masters are back in the pool, Scorpion Ball is returning, our numbers are growing, and we might be hosting… an actual tournament!
Tournament
USA Water Polo wants to co-host a tournament at Micki, tentatively set for October 10-11 (Oct. 3rd and 4th, which we floated last week, won’t work for scheduling reasons). The Central Texas tournament would be split so younger athletes would play at Milburn in Cedar Park and older ones at Micki. It’s exciting news for us since it would be the first full-contact tournament in Texas since prior to the lockdown.
USA Water Polo will be managing the tournament but AquaTex will be required to have volunteers run the tables and oversee hospitality. We also have the opportunity to sell concessions and gear.
Welcome (Back)
We’re very happy to have Aaron back with AquaTex after a long hiatus. Welcome back! And our partnership with Longhorn has been so good for the club as we have several of their athletes training with us while UT is closed. We love having them with us: Greyson, Kelly, Owen, and the recent influx of 12u athletes, Cruz, Flora, Chase, Nick, and Landon. #AquaHorns
Attendance Records
We’ve had some questions about practice attendance, so that information is now available to our families via this Google sheet. #BeYourBest
Scorpions Ball (formerly Splashball) Returns
Coach Hayley Krebsbach is back to lead our Scorpions Ball program which will start the fall on Thursday, September 24 from 6.30 PM to 7.30 PM. The program is for athletes age 5-11, designed to provide basic skills and understanding of the sport of water polo in a fun, dynamic, safe, and easy to learn aquatic experience. It costs $5/session and $10 annual USA Water Polo fee. The registration process is new and simpler (and mandatory). Click here for the link.
Weekly Online Learning
We’ll return to Zoom in order to go over game film and other technical and tactical aspects of the game that we don’t get to cover during pool time training. It’ll be scheduled for every Thursday at 7:30 PM. Look for a Zoom invite via our GroupMe and/or email.
Jolyn Fitting
We’ll be receiving a Jolyn fit kit for their new water polo suits. We can do fittings beginning as early as practice on Sept. 16. The kit will be available at practice for at least a week.
Masters
We’ve had really good turnout for our Saturday masters’ shoot-arounds, which have included massive “ultimate” rules battles. Thanks to everyone for coming. There are several cancellations due to schedule conflicts on the calendar so check it out before you arrive at Micki.
Olympic Development Program at Micki
Registration is open for the first clinics of the season for USA Water Polo’s Olympic Development Program. They will be held at Micki on September 26 and 27. Girls will attend on Saturday afternoon and boys on Sunday morning. Coach James is in his fifth season as Head Coach of the program along side some of the best coaches in Texas.
RYTE Sport Store
RYTE has told me that their ordering process has changed for certain items, mainly those that require embroidery. So we will now be keeping the RYTE store open for limited times at the beginning of each season/session. It will be open for the remainder of September and will then re-open in November as the winter season arrives.
See you on the deck,
James
