He’s been with the club for just a few months but has already made his mark. Coaches have selected Colton Nealis as our April 2023 Player of the Month.
Both hard work and showing up (his attendance is among our highest) have clearly paid off as Colton has quickly become one of the biggest scoring threats on our 14u team. We’re very excited to have seen such progress in a short time and look forward to a bright future.
Congratulations, Colton!
#BeYourBest
We had to jump through some interesting administrative hoops but the deal is done now. Savannah “Savvy” Ruiz joins our coaching staff and has already begun working with our younger athletes and, in particular, our goalkeepers. She’s currently a player at Texas A&M after having been a standout goalie for Jersey Village High School in Cypress. She learned her skills as an athlete with CFWPC and now brings them to AquaTex, especially during her summers off from school. Welcome Savvy!
Our 14u boys team is registered for the SWZ Spring Champs in Cypress on May 6-7. There’s a little bit of time remaining to get on that roster if you haven’t already. We’ll also have 10u players and Izzy (maybe) playing for Longhorn rosters. For those going to the tournament we suggest, as always, you assume we’ll have early Saturday games.
This fall AquaTex will sponsor a consolidated high school team. It will welcome any high school-registered athlete attending a school that does not offer UIL water polo. We already have several athletes whose schools do not (or no longer!) offer water polo. We hope to add many others from our area.
Our aim will be to play any local team that will put us on our schedule, and the other consolidated teams that compete in the fall (Dallas Consolidated is itching for more games). Athletes will need to join AquaTex at least temporarily (two months), and be registered members of USA Water Polo in order to play.
If you or anyone you know is interested in playing please send them the link to this form, where we’re collecting information about what this fall effort may look like for us as a club and as a team.
Reiterating a point I made several months ago, if you’re in high school and interested in playing water polo in college (varsity or club) it is CRUCIAL that you start planning for that now, even Freshmen. And I cannot urge you more strongly to watch this Zoom video featuring my podcast colleague Joe Linehan, who knows more about the collegiate recruiting process than anyone. Please watch it as soon as possible because there may be some misunderstanding about how the process works, scholarships, etc.
See you on the deck.
Time to catch up everyone.
Amazing news, especially for our families who are familiar with Lake Creek: we’re not moving! For the first time since the water polo program was created we will not have to relocate in April. All our practices will be at Micki. There will be some shuffling of scheduling because the Round Rock Dolphins Swim Team will start practicing there soon. So stay tuned. But… no Lake Creek!
A very brief update on SWZ Spring Champs, which is really two separate tournaments.
We still have until April 19 to assemble a roster and register but as of today, based on parent/athlete feedback, AquaTex is not sending teams to the 18u/16u tourney on April 29-30. Any athlete who wants to play (there are three currently signed up) will play for Longhorn. We’ll make the final decision on the 18th. (Have a good time at the prom!)
The weekend of May 6-7 AquaTex will send a 14u team while our 12u and 10u athletes will play for Longhorn. Make sure to sign up.
I asked for your feedback and you’ve given it. Based on that feedback here are our plans (still open for discussion) for Junior Olympics:
Please review the dates for each tournament and share your feedback with Coach James if you haven’t already, or feel free to update your interests via the Google Form we sent to our families. For those planing on a California trip we strongly advise you to book FULLY REFUNDABLE hotels and/or flights as soon as possible. Only after the qualifier tournament in June can we commit to actually traveling.
Our teams did well, we had a good time, and Coach Alon looks annoyed. Success! Thanks to everyone who made the trek to UT.
Here are the final results. And we’ll share a link in GroupMe if you have photos from the event you’d like to share.
Based on your demand there are a few more items in our AquaTex Gear inventory. AquaTex Swim Team is a partner with Arena so we now have a big aquatics backpack in our store, and a very classic warmup jacket. (So classic that my 1984 Beach Swim Club version is hanging in my daughter’s closet right now. Nostalgic!). We chose SwimOutlet as the most convenient partner, and with the lowest prices we could find for the items we needed. We’ve partnered with them in the past with good results (back when AQTX was a Speedo user). There’s a parka in the works too so keep an eye open.
Repeating an email sent to our High School families, applications for Academic All-American honors will open this Friday. Last season Jacob Gerakos applied for and earned the honor and, given the academic excellence of our athletes, we hope more AquaTexans will apply this year. Good luck! Details below.
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The 2022-2023 Academic All-American Program is set to begin soon! Please spread the word to all High School members within your club organization. This is a great way for our members to be recognized for their academic excellence!
2023 AAA Dates
– Friday, April 14th AAA Application Opens
– Friday, August 4th AAA Application Deadline
– Friday, September 29th Transcript Submission Deadline
– Friday, October 20th Announcement of AAA Recipients
Please find all information regarding the AAA program, transcript submission, guides on how to apply, and qualifications in the following links. (NOTE: Transcripts should not be submitted until the FULL school year is over and final grade are submitted. Early/unfinished transcripts will not be accepted.)
CLICK HERE for all USAWP AAA website information on Eligibility, Enter to Win info, Official Transcript info, and more in depth AAA links!
CLICK HERE for a downloadable PDF regarding qualifications, how transcripts are graded, and acceptable courses.
CLICK HERE for an updated guide on how to pay the application fee.
CLICK HERE on how to upgrade your membership to qualify for AAA.
If you have any questions that have not been answered by any of our links, then please email us at and we will connect with you as soon as we can!
For members to receive more important reminders and information regarding the Academic All American Program. Please click “YES” to “USAWP Communications” under the ‘Communications Preferences’ Tab at the bottom of your personal profile. Members may not receive this opportunity if their communications are off, so spread the word!
Another big tourney this weekend. We cover that a little plus more.
First, youth training this weekend will begin at the scheduled time but practices will not be staggered. That means that all age groups (14u, high school, novice) will start at 10 AM on Saturday, 9 AM on Sunday. Swim2Score will remain the same time, 11:00 AM on Saturday. Masters on Sunday will go from 10:30 to noon.
As always we’ll try to share all the details regarding the Spring Jam on the Event Page. When in doubt, bookmark that page and check it out. On it includes the schedule, rosters, notes on travel, entry fees, and much more.
We’d also like every AquaTex game recorded on video so we can review them during Monday training sessions. So if you’d like to give it a try, or have experience doing it, please let Coach James know. For those who might help us with video recording, a couple notes:
Get your zoom in and out ready. What we want to see (and hear) as coaches is:
Mainly for our newer members, April is approaching which means that the Round Rock ISD will shut down Micky Krebsbach for 2-4 weeks so they can clean the pool, paint the locker room floors, and some other stuff that never seems to include replacing old poorly functioning electrical outlets, installing more storage space, or much at all that directly helps us as an aquatics program (one can be grateful and annoyed at the same time!). But, as usual, we’re not entirely certain when our eviction will take place let alone how long the repairs will take. Just get ready for the jaunt to the East Side: Lake Creek Pool!
We’re so happy to keep growing, adding new young members. In March we welcomed Ryan, Ethan, Jacob B., Rachel, Josh, and Brodie. Welcome to the club all of you and your families.
And now, April birthdays. Happy Birthday!
See you on the deck.
His is one of the great stories in our (short) history. In 2o22 Vitalik left his family and his town in Ukraine to live in Austin with his cousin, Maria, Coach Alon’s partner. He got tossed in to the deep end of American culture, enrolling at McCallum HS in Austin with limited experience speaking English and none living in Texas.
Another thing in which he lacked experience: water polo. So it’s been a delight to see how quickly he has picked up the game in his relatively short period of time here in Central Texas. He’s a great addition to our club both as an athlete and a teammate.
вітаю тебе Віталіку!
Congratulations, Vitalik!
#BeYourBest
Welcome back to school, everyone. I’m sure there are quite mixed feelings about that! But with that, we turn the page with some news regarding our programming, upcoming competition, and more.
Some years ago we ceased using seasons as a way of organizing training and competition. The main reason was for billing and to manage expectations: some would be under the impression that our sport was seasonal (Spring only, for example) instead of year-around. And billing for AquaTex is monthly whereas with other clubs it is often seasonal.
But we’re changing things up beginning today. Billing remains EXACTLY the same as it is now: monthly fees. But, training will now roughly follow this seasonal pattern:
Each of those seasons is punctuated by a tournament. Our work for that season will be aimed so that we peak for that final competition. Junior Olympics at the end of July of each year will feature most prominently. At the beginning of each season we start with conditioning and fundamentals and end the season with more tactical skills: from basic to more sophisticated.
We will also strongly encourage new athletes to join us at the beginning of each season so they can learn the fundamentals (other teams require it).
So, welcome to the new Spring season of 2023. Athletes should bring workout clothing every practice for the first three weeks of the season (shoes not slides!) and have goggles ready for any swim sets. Our aim is to peak for the The Welcome to Texas Tournament in San Antonio on May 27-28. All other competition before that is important but more focused on individual and team development.
Hardware! We had a very successful Texas Challenge Cup just prior to Spring Break. Check out photos from our experience here (add any you might have.)
Both the boys 18u and 14u teams placed second in the Silver bracket of their tournaments, two rosters full of brand new players. Meanwhile, Our 10u players placed third overall with the Longhorns, Ilay and his Longhorn 12u teammates earned second place, and our 18u girls were (in this coach’s opinion) the standouts on Longhorn’s 18u girls roster, which went 2-2. We finished the winter season with a nice collection of hardware, some great experience for our newest athletes in particular, and momentum toward a successful spring. Well done to everyone who participated, and huge thanks to our families for supporting us from the stands and, especially, for working the desks.
Longhorn Coach Tom has invited our middle schoolers to compete against the team he coaches at St. Stephen’s in Austin. We’ll be consulting with Age Group parents in the coming days but want to play at at least two of the following four available dates at St. Stephens’ pool beginning at 4pm until 5:30: March 29, April 6, April 26, May 3. Plus, Longhorn wants to have a middle school game day at UT on April 13 from 7-9pm. You can plan on us going to that one for sure. This is an exciting time for Central Texas as it’s the first time we’ve ever had specific competition for middle schools.
We still have some time but check out the current sign-ups for the Houston Spring Jam, April 1-2. Our 1ou mixed, 12u mixed, and 18u girls athletes will likely be playing for Longhorn unless (of course!) we get enough of our own to sign up.
Played as two separate tournaments – one for 16s and 18s in Lewisville, the other for all other ages at the CyFair Natatorium in Houston – this should be one of the biggest tournaments of the spring if not the whole year.
A brief note on some changes that will take place beginning in August. We’ve gotten feedback from athletes and parents about the structure of our program and are going to make some adjustments that all families will be required to acknowledge and agree to prior to re-registering in August, as all families must. The details are in the works but some of the tentative changes include an agreement to be signed by each family acknowledging the club’s expectations regarding training, competing, playing time, uniforms, discipline, communications, and more. Plus, more clarity from the club on our philosophy, which directly affects expectations for our athletes and families. It’s a work in progress so if you have feedback let Coach James know.
We’ve scheduled an online meeting regarding Junior Olympics for Friday, March 24 beginning at 7:00 PM. There will be two Zoom links for calls beginning at 7:00 PM and 7:40 PM. My account is limited to 40 minutes so I just set up two meetings, both of which will be recorded so we can share them with you. Keep an eye out for an email and/or GroupMe message with the links.
See you on the deck.
Some call him Matheo, some Rudy-Matheo; we call him Rudy! And he’s our February 2023 Player of the Month.
Coaches have been watching this young man improve, get faster, work harder, and help lead his team. He’s been a regular performer at practice and in games and is coming on strong both athletically and as a leader. Look for him to be a center for this program for years to come.
Congratulations, Rudy!
#BeYourBest
Catching up after quite a few weeks. We have a big tourney this weekend so let’s cover that and more.
First, we’ll cancel all training this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, March 4-5, since such a huge crowd of us will be competing in North Texas.
As always we’ll try to share all the details regarding the tourney on the Event Page. When in doubt, bookmark that page and check it out. On it includes the schedule, rosters, notes on travel, entry fees, and much more.
According to Thunder, the hosts, the tournament has gotten so big they are going to require one worker assigned by each participating team to work the desk. Luckily we have plenty who helped at Spin Lob, whether an athlete who’s not playing in that game or a parent, so we should be covered. We may send out a signup sheet like with did for Spin Lob so please keep your eyes open for that.
Starting with this tournament we’d also like every AquaTex game recorded on video so we can review them during Monday training sessions. So if you’d like to give it a try, or have experience doing it, please let Coach James know. For those who might help us with video recording, a couple notes:
Get your zoom in and out ready. What we want to see (and hear) as coaches is:
Check out this KXAN story that features Cash Brown and many of his LISD compatriots who are, along with their parents, working hard to re-instate UIL water polo at Vista Ridge, Cedar Park, and Vandegrift in 2023. Since we have several athletes already or soon-t0-be competing for one of these three schools, we support completely every effort to reverse this silly decision.
You already know AquaTex’s position on the issue: cancelling water polo is as short-sighted a decision a district could make especially after a season in which three schools fielded teams for the first time. What an amazing letdown! I’ll be writing about it more on TXWaterpolo.com in the coming days. Until then, check out these cheerful faces and, if you’re a resident of the LISD, perhaps you could let the administration know you want your UIL Polo back!
We’re consulting as coaches about training during Spring Break, between 11 and 18 March. It is likely that if we have training it will include all groups simultaneously or something like that. Stay tuned.
Mainly for our newer members, April is approaching which means that the Round Rock ISD will shut down Micky Krebsbach for 2-4 weeks so they can clean the pool, paint the locker room floors, and some other stuff that never seems to include replacing old poorly functioning electrical outlets, installing more storage space, or much at all that directly helps us as an aquatics program (one can be grateful and annoyed at the same time!). But, as usual, we’re not entirely certain when our eviction will take place let alone how long the repairs will take. Just get ready for the jaunt to the East Side: Lake Creek Pool! (And yes, of course we’re hoping the RRAC might be available).
We need to have another online meeting about JOs this summer. I’m going to pencil in on the calendar Friday, March 24 at 7:00 PM online. Let me know what you think. By the way, I created this cool flowchart to help anyone understand how we decide to go to California or Dallas. More links and details forthcoming.
It’s been a while since we updated the list of our newest members. Thanks to all of you for coming to us and welcome to AquaTex, Rein, Melia, Keegan, Remy, Noelle, Colton, Jake, Emeric, and Ethan, let alone the several who have given us a try but haven’t signed up yet. We hope they will.
And finally, some belated and some forthcoming birthday best wishes. Happy Birthday!
See you on the deck.
No one has put in the work that Cash has since joining us a short time ago. One of the most eager to train, including attending extra practices, he’s shown huge improvement in his limited time with the team. Plus he’s one of very few who were selected to play on an ODP Southwest Zone roster at the recent Super Regionals. We’re super proud and excited to have him as a young leader on AquaTex.
Congratulations, Cash!
#BeYourBest
We did it. The biggest hosting effort AquaTex Waterpolo has ever done. The Spin Lob Classic is over and after 38 games our people received big compliments from visiting teams, referees, parents of younger players, and USA Water Polo. I personally want to thank everyone who spent time at one of the desks, helped with hospitality, cleaned up, learned something new, took some of your weekend time to do a good deed. Thank you, AquaTexans! You stepped up when the club needed you and for that I’m grateful.
Our gratitude and thanks to Mark Stohrer and all those who work so hard at the RRISD Aquatic Center (the “RRAC” as far as we’re concerned). They set us up for success and were always there to support our efforts not to mention, were willing to host two days worth of masters water polo. That was the first USA Water Polo event in those pools, and we hope there will be many more, and soon.
My friend and colleague Joe Linehan deserves mention for organizing the entire event and reaching out to AquaTex when he needed another local host. USA Water Polo entrusted us with overseeing the event and we performed well, so can expect similar requests in the future. Plus, the cash money and new water polo balls never hurt.
Yes, we’re planning on going to the Texas Challenge Cup in North Texas on March 4-5. Families can register their interest in playing via our TeamUnify site. Find the event and then either attend/decline or “Edit Commitment.” The deadline is early for this tourney, February 17, so let us know your plans as soon as possible.