Water Polo with Mikayla

Saturday we tripped it down to LMU to see the second day of the LMU invite. Traveling with Brooke and Sean always has its excitement. Plus you add in LA traffic and well the excitement of being dead stopped grows on you. 

After rushing to the pool, we managed to only miss the first quarter. During the start of the fourth quarter KK got in. It was awesome to see her play. In that time she was all over the place. On a 50/50 ball she swam hard. Then from there she made a great pass for a goal. Mark up a great assist cause of not giving up on the play. Then a few possessions later she almost scored a goal. KK got up on a counter and got the pass late, then just missed the cage. 

During the break in games was probably the best part of the day. KK was able to give us a tour of the campus. I had been given a tour earlier in the year. But Sean and Brooke had not yet. It was great we saw where she would be living next year. A few of the building that she has classes in, the different type of restaurants available on campus. Plus she showed us UHal which is an awesome building with one heck of a view of LA. It was pretty clear for an LA day and we could see about 2 or 3 miles. Since KK needed to be back early to warm up for her next game we dropped her off. Then the rest of us headed down to the marina to have a small lunch and wasting sometime before the next game. Luckily the Aztecs were on TV as well. It worked out nicely since we were able to watch the first half before leaving to head back to the pool. Great news is the Aztecs advanced to play in the Sweet 16.

After the game we waited for KK to have her final meetings. The tournament ended with the Lions ending 2-2. Then it was off to dinner. We headed to a great little pizza place right off campus. They had TV's which allowed us to catch the last few basketball games of the day. During this March Madness you never know who is going to be the winner, you just gotta watch the games. Plus watching sports with my family is one of my favorite hobbies. Spending Saturday all together was amazing, the older we get the less it happens. So just getting to be in a relaxed restaurant hanging out is time I am thankful for. Saturday was a lot of fun! Being with the family is always a pleasure. Mom took this great picture of us all. Look even Dad got into the day with a smile! 

Great job playing KK we are all so very proud of you! Thanks for giving us all a reason to see your beautiful campus and hangout. I have the best parents and siblings anyone could ask for! 

Make it official she is a Lion

As those of you that read my blog are very aware I bleed Red and Black.  I have strong ties to San Diego State and am a very proud of Alumni.  I check goaztecs.com multiple times a day and am very aware of how all the teams are doing.. Well moving forward I will be checking out lmulions.com to see what is happening at KK's school.

Well I just checked out there athletic website and this is what I found on there home screen!!

Main screen on LMULIONS!!

Here is the article:

LOS ANGELES - Head Coach Kyle announced on Wednesday (Nov. 21) the signing of a trio of All-CIF performers to join the LMU women's water polo program in the Fall of 2013. Kiana Etrata (Villa Park HS), Elanor Lee (Foothill HS) and Mikayla Vessey (Redlands East Valley HS) all earned All-CIF honors as they prepare for their senior seasons.

"Our goal for this recruiting class was to bring in players that would have an immediate impact in our program," said Witt. "All three have the potential to do that. They continue our success in the classroom as they all come in with very high GPAs and all three are also on highly competitive high school and club water polo teams that play in big tournaments. They are expected to perform in those championship environments and that will really help them as they move into college water polo."

Etrata is a 5-4 driver and two-meter defender and will join the Lions from Villa Park High School while also playing for the SET Water Polo Club. Lee is a 5-6 driver and two-meter defender that plays for Foothill High School and the SoCal Water Polo Club. Vessey is a 5-2 driver from Redlands East Valley HS and the Xtreme Water Polo Club.

"We only graduate two student-athletes at the completion of the 2013 season; but they are big losses for us. Jessica Morelos and Morgan Bonk are both two-year starters and four-year letterwinners for our program and have a wealth of championship experience," said Witt. "Thus, we will ask a lot of this incoming trio of players to help fill those losses."

Etrata is a two-time first-team All-League selection that was named All-CIF this past season.

"Kiana has a ton of big game and championship experience. She played in two age divisions last summer and both of her teams thrived with Kiana playing several different roles," said Witt. "Kiana's strengths are her high water polo IQ, her competitive drive and her work ethic. Kiana will have a great career at LMU and we are excited to have her in our program."

While playing for Foothill, Lee was named third-team All-CIF as a sophomore and also brings a wealth of championship experience in the pool.

"Eleanor plays for one of the best high school programs in the country and will be a three year starter for head coach Jeff Colton," said Witt. "She also plays with SoCal WPC under Andrew Rowe that is constantly in the semi-finals and finals of all the major USAWP tournaments. Eleanor is an incredibly smart defender that has been able to limit some of the top offensive players at their positions due to her fundamental skill level and her desire to outwork people in the pool. Eleanor is used to being a productive member of highly competitive teams and we feel as though she could make a big impact during her first year as a Lion."

Vessey has been familiar to All-CIF honors, earning them all three of her previous seasons at Redlands East. She also has been a three-time first-team All-League selection, earning MVP honors a year ago as a junior.

"Mikayla is quietly one of the better players in the region," said Witt. "She has scored over 350 goals through 3 years of competition but scoring isn't even her strength. Her strength is her relentless attacking style that produces countless steals and kick outs for her teams. We have a rich tradition with talented attackers and Mikayla has all the qualities that make for a successful college attacker."

The Lions will begin their season in mid-January with the LMU Opening Weekend Tournament on Jan. 19.