Beach Club Water Polo, a new Cal State Long Beach club sport, is set to compete in its first round of matches in the Pacific Coast Division this weekend.
Initially created in fall 2012, Beach Club Water Polo (BCWP) now has about 30 active members, according to BCWP President and junior business finance major Jordan Lisnock.
Lisnock said he noticed that there was no water polo club at last fall’s Week of Welcome so he spoke to the club sports and recreation department to find out how he could create one. CSULB currently has NCAA Division I men’s and women’s water polo teams, but the time commitment required to for the team tends to push newcomers away.
“Basically there was a need for it,” said Lisnock, who has played water polo since sixth grade. “I knew people who wanted to participate, so I put [them] together. I didn’t really think too much about it.”
Beach Club Water Polo (BCWP) has joined the 36 other club sports that officially completed registration this fall, according to Club Sports and Recreation Director Rita Hayes.
In the first round of matches at University of California, San Diego, BCWP will face University of California, Santa Barbara on Saturday and both Cal State Northridge and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on Sunday.
Lukas Fuentes, a member of BCWP and sophomore biochemistry major, said he played on a California Interscholastic Federation water polo team for three years. He said he has loved being surrounded by water since he was a young boy.
“More people need to experience it,” Fuentes said. “A lot of people think that it’s like volleyball in water. It’s more than that … even during rest time between quarters, you still have to tread in order to stay afloat.”
Fuentes said he plans to stay in the club for the season and that he is glad to have the chance to compete in a league while sharing his love for the sport with other people. His water polo plans after college remain uncertain, though. If anything, he said he wants to continue playing during his free time on the side, just to stay involved.
In preparation for the upcoming season, Lisnock said that practices have been increased from once a week to four times a week.
Although the club was approved last year after completing the necessary paperwork, the main obstacle was obtaining pool time hours, according to Hayes.
Hayes, who is also the BCWP adviser, said the pool was often unavailable because kinesiology classes and Division 1 water polo teams were using it. She said they have priority over any other clubs that want to use the pool.
Hayes said despite the obstacles, she wishes the best for the team.
“I hope they grow,” Hayes said. “Jordan [Lisnock] has worked hard to get this program going, and it’d be awesome if we won a national title.”
