Announcements
(8/12/09)
Announcements
(8/12/09)
Congratulations to Ryanne O'Donnell for becoming New Trier's first two-time All American selection as a repeat to the 5th Team. The varsity team also earned an 8th consecutive IHSA Team Academic Achievement Award (every year since the inception of the award) which is published in the state tournament program each year.
All-State Awards and more (6/1) As annonced at the banquet, Ryanne O'Donnell was named second team All-State and Sophia Palmer to the Third Team. Congratulations to both for being recognized as two of the top 30 players in the state! These two honors and many more have been added to the history pages. Please tell Coach Leissner if you notice any errors on any of those pages or have updated information.
Congratulations & Reminders (5/20) The CSL all-conference and GBN all-sectional teams were announced last night (Tuesday 5/19). Congratulations to Ryanne O’Donnell and Sophia Palmer for being named to both. Nora Boneham and Maddy Urban were also named all-conference and Erisa Apantaku was selected to the all-sectional team. The coaches of both respective groups all voted on the players (excluding their own). These individual honors reflect both their individual talents as well as our TEAM success. All three All-Sectional picks are nominated for All-State award consideration which will be voted on next week, after the state tournament.
Reminders:
Please turn in your caps to Coach Leissner and your bag to the equipment ladies in your KW locker room.
The team banquet is next Thursday (5/28) at Michigan Shores Club (all equipment must be turned in to receive your awards).
Please clean out your pool locker ASAP- the locker room will be cleaned out during finals. Anything left will be donated or discarded accordingly.
Sectionals (5/14) Good 15-6 win over Glenbrook North! We now advance to the semi-final against Evanston on Friday night, 5:45 PM at GBN. Sectional Final is at Noon on Saturday.
Varsity CSL Champs! (5/11) Congratulations to the Varsity team for capturing the Central Suburban League Tournament Championship at Glenbrook South with viciories over Maine Soutn (12-2) and Glenbrook North (15-4) on Friday night, and Evanston (6-3) on Saturday. On to Sectionals at Glenbrook North this week. The sectional schedule is posted on the IHSA web site. Our first game is against GBN at 7 PM on Wednesday, May 13.
Final JV Game (5/7) Congratulations to the JV team for an great final performance in beating Mundelein at their place, 7-6!
Freshman & JV Cap Return (5/6) All freshman and JV players should return their caps on Thursday, May 7 afer school. Freshmen should take them to Coach Kimball at the Northfield pool office after school. All JV players should return their caps to Coach Leissner at Winnetka, any time on Thursday. Bags should be returned to the KW locker room at your respective campus. You will be billed for any missing equipment and awards will be held until resolved- PLEASE TURN IN EVERYTHING ASAP!
GBN F/S Invitational Results (5/4) Congratulations to both the freshman and sophomore teams for their great games at the GBN F/S Tournament. Both teams finished 2-1 after they battled each other through overtime and a shoot-out in their first round match-up. The sophomores pulled that one out, but did not have enough left to take care of Evanston (Lost 3-5) in the second round, before winning the 3rd place game over GBN (11-6). The freshmen romped through the consolation bracket with great TEAM wins over Maine South (13-4) and Highland Park (13-2) for 5th place.
After the Academics (5/4) The "After the Academics" night for the class of 2013 will be Monday, May 11 at 7:00 PM in the Northfield gyms 1, 2, & 3. This is our opportunity to introduce our sport to the class of 2013 (freshmen next year) along with every other extra-curricular activity at New Trier. Please let Coach Leissner if you are interested in helping this year. More details are in the email sent today.
Team Banquet (5/4) Hold the date! May 28 is officially the date for the team banquet at Michigan Shores Club.
GBN F/S Invitational (4/29) UPDATED AGAIN! The GBN F/S CSL tournament information has changed. We will have two teams: Freshmen team and a Sophomore team, and they play each other the first game. The linked information is the bracket set up, and pretty straight forward in terms of times and possibilities. All F/S will go to the tournament on the same bus from Winnetka at 3:30 and return there after our last game.
Bruno Water Polo Camp (4/28) The water polo staff of Brown University is returning again to the area for a two day camp opportunity this summer. It will be held at GBN on July 17 & 18. This is also the weekend of our summer league championship tournaments. There be a conflict only if we have to qualify for the tournament in a play-in game, otherwise we should be playing on Sunday- thus leaving Friday and Saturday open for this camp.
Senior Night (4/27) Remember that Tuesday's game aginst Lake Forest is the class of 2009's last home game! Please help honor them with your presence at the game. Parents should be on deck at the shallow end (come through the appropriate locker room) before 5, that is when we will introduce the seniors and their parents. The game should start by 5:15 PM, with JV to follow. There will also be cake served after the games.
Sectional Tournament (4/27) the IHSA Sectional tournament is set. Please see our schedule page or the IHSA page for more details.
2010 returning players (4/24)
There are several opportunities to continue playing water polo after this season ends: Summer Fun at New Trier, several competing local teams, and camps all over the country. Some can wait to be acted on, but this one can not: The linked letter and Camp of Champions registration information from Claire Howie, current boys assistant coach and future Summer Fun and club water polo coach, describes a tremendous opportunity for our players.
Please note the very short timeline to register for this camp and trip. Claire has put in a large amount of time and energy to arrange this trip, and some details were slow in developing, thus the short amount of time to act. In addition to some great water polo experiences, there is also the opportunity to establish some contacts in the water polo community for potential college connections.
While some of Summer Fun would be missed, this trip has my whole-hearted support. We have had players go to this camp in the past with great results. Please consider signing up for both New Trier Summer Fun and this California trip.
Contact me or Claire if you have any questions- Coach Mike
GBS rescheduled (4/16) The games will be played at Glenbrook South on Monday, April 27. Freshmen at 4:30, followed by Varsity (~5:30), and then JV (~6:30).
St. Ignatius Tournament (4/11) The Schedule for the Maroon & Gold Tournament at St. Igatius is posted. Varsity will have an early out for Friday, missing 9th period. Please get those cards Monday afternoon! JV & freshman will have a combined practice at Winnetka on Friday, 4/18. ALL GAMES WILL BE PLAYED IN THE SMALL POOL (again) THIS YEAR.
Team Pictures (4/11) Team pictures were passed out last week and posted on the web (photos link). If you would like to order one still, please contact VIP photography directly at http://www.vipis.com/VIP/default.aspx.
Mike Murphy Results (4/6) Congratulations to the varsity team for finishing in 6th place, out of 12 teams, at the Fenwick- Mike Murphy Memorial Invitational, one of the toughest girls tournaments all season. 8 of the top 10 teams in the state were there, in addition to a very good team from Florida. Many coaches and officials commented on how impressed they were with our team! Did I mention this was one of our best showings ever at this tournament? Next year this tournament will likely be during our Spring Break, please plan on being here for it as most of varsity was this year. The commitment is paying off!
Summer Plans (4/3) Summer water polo is about 9 weeks away- yes really! More information will be made available very soon as some registrations will be due by May 1. Stay tuned for some exciting opportunities in addition to the ones offered last summer.
Pasta Parties (3/30) There will not be a pasta party this Wednesday, 4/1. There will be a pasta party for each practice group, the calendar reflects this first change and the others will be added ASAP.
Mike Murphy Inv. (3/23) The Fenwick Mike Murphy Memorial Invitational schedule and information has arrived. Follow the link and note we will play one game on both Thursday and Friday, as well as two games on Saturday. We will be staying overnight on Friday- more info to follow. Accordingly, afternoon practices on April 2 & 3 for JV & Freshmen will be combined at Winnetka after school.
Northside College Prep F/S (3/1) The tournament information/schedule for the Northside College Prep Fr/So tournament has arrived. We have four games in 6 hours- a whole lot of water polo packed into a short time! Please let us know your Spring Break plans, if you have not already, as we will need to figure out rosters for Loyola on 3/20 and this tournament on 3/21. Roster for the F/S tournament is posted- all F/S in town are going! Bus is leaving from Essex at 6:45 AM.
Sisters! (3/16) Now that our rosters are reasonably settled and thing are rolling along, we are ready to start our sister program. Every girl on the team will have at least one, and most will have two "sisters" on the team, one one on each level (V/JV/Fr). The captains will be explaining more at practice, but the idea is to have someone to ask questions or have a connection with on the other levels to help them along through the season. There will be other activities that the captains will coordinate.
Week 3 (3/16) Great start to the new season! All levels saw significant action last week and performed very well. This week will have a wide range of games as the varsity & JV play Highland Park on Tuesday at home, Varsity only goes to Maine South on Thursday, and then everyone plays Loyola on Friday. To end the week and begin Spring Break, the freshmen and sophomores will be at Northside College Prep for a tournament on Saturday. Another busy week, but then the next two are reletivly calm.
Fri & Sat F/S (updated 3/12) The rosters for Fenwick & Prospect this weekend are posted. Follow the link! All freshmen and sophomores will be playing somewhere Friday night. All busses will leave from, and drop off at Winnetka. On Friday night, 19 Fr/So will go to Prospect for two games, and 13 Fr/So will go to Fenwick for one game. 19 Fr/So will go to Fenwick on Saturday and play three games. All others are encouraged to come watch the varsity home tournament on Saturday.
IHSA Link (3/9) A link to the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Girls Water Polo page was added to the home page. On that page is and will be a wealth of information including: rule changes for this season, a guide to water polo, and soon to be posted; the sectional sites & assignments.
Intra-squad/Parent Meeting (3/3) Monday, March 9 will be our annual intra-squad game, where the players get their first experience of the season with a "real referee", the table gets practice running a game, and the parents can watch. The game will start about 4:30 and will end at 5:45. At 6:00, we will meet in the student cafeteria for our team information meeting with all parents, players, & coaches. Please plan to attend, we are aiming to be done around 6:30, but will certainly end before 7:00 PM.
Fenwick F/S (3/3) The Fenwick Fr/So Tournament information has arrived. Follow the link. All Fr/So players will be playing next Friday night (3/13) at either Fenwick or Prospect. Teams will be announced next week.
Season is upon us! (2/25) Get your Permit to Participate now! Remember Friday is an Institute Day, and the Winnetka campus will be closed for the boys state swim meet. Clear out any lockers at Winnetka for the weekend. All practices for all levels are at Winnetka for the first week and a day (3/2-3/9). Monday morning is optional and the afternoon is our first required practice. Meet in the balcony with a pencil. If you need extended time for the test, please let me know ahead of time and we will work something out. If you need to see me in person, I will be at Northfield Wednesday morning (IM polo) until lunch, then at Winnetka after lunch, and all day Thursday. I will try to leave my office door open as much as possible, but I will be setting up for the state meet. Coach Leissner
Prospect (2/25) We have confirmed a minor game time change with Prospect on 3/13, the varsity game will start at 6:00 PM, JV at 7:00 and a possible third game following.
Try-out Rubric (2/25) Follow the link to view the try-out criteria rubric to see what the relative scale of performance is and what they mean.
Yard Signs & Magnets (2/19) The boy's team is ordering a limited number of yard signs & magnets, and would like to offer them to the girl's team as well. See their web site for details. Boys water polo web site: http://www.newtrier.k12.il.us/page.aspx?id=5284. Orders are due March 9, 2009.
Updates (2/17) The calendar has some slight revisions for spring break practice times and freshmen practice times were added where they were missing. There is also some doubt as to if Maine South will have a JV team, thus a JV game with us. This will be updated when confirmed.
Second LAST CHANCE! Try-on Suits (2/13) Coach Leissner still has the try-on suits. He will be at Northfield for IM polo in the morning and during the day for freshmen KW swimming classes, then at Winnetka after school for boys swimming practice. Please contact him to arrange a time to get them until the are returned.
Lap swim/open pool/water polo conditioning time (2/11) will be available at the Northfield campus pool from 3:15 to 5:15 PM during the last two weeks of February (2/17-20, 2/23-26). Free, and available only to students & staff, present ID when you sign in. Bring your own suit and towel. Ball play will be allowed at the discretion of the supervisor. You can do your own thing, but I recommend doing Coach Howie's conditioning program.
Swim Caps (1/5) The order form was not very helpful in letting newer players know you need BOTH blue & white swim caps for water polo (home/away caps). If you need swim caps, you should order both colors.
Dry-land Workouts (2/5) COMMING SOON! Captain's dry-land workouts will occur next week. Stay tuned to this web page and check your email. If you did not get an email about this already, you are not on the list- contact Coach Leissner. Captain Nora Boneham will send out specifics on dry-land soon.
Parent Shirt (2/4) As the first order forms started rolling in yesterday, it was pointed out that the forms handed out at the morning meeting did not have the parent polo shirt information. The afternoon group has the revised form which has the details on the parent shirt and is available from the link below. You may fill that information in or print a new one, whichever is easier for you!
Try-on Suits (1/29) The try-on suits will be available at Winnetka before or after school, 6AM to 7:45 AM & 3:15 PM to 4:45 PM- arrange ahead of time with Coach Leissner for before school. They will be available at Northfield from 8:15 AM to 2:30 PM- during your free time only, go to pool office.
Organizational Meetings (updated 1/29) were held Wednesday January 28th at 7:30 a.m. in the Northfield pool balcony OR 3:30 p.m. at Winnetka room 242. Contact Coach Leissner or Coach Kimball if you cannot attend. Forms (season information sheet, order form,athlete information: page1, page 2) are available here- including the updated order form with the parent shirt option. The personal information sheet is two pages. Please turn forms in to Coach Leissner or Kimball.
Changes (1/21) From last night's Coaches & Rules meetings: Maine South will have a JV team (added JV game, changed Fr practice). Two rules changes: shot clock changed from 35 to 30 seconds. Goal throw should be taken by the nearest player to the ball, behind 2M line (often the goalie, but can be a teammate). You will need to know these for the test!
IM Polo/Open Pool (1/20) Reminder of two great opportunities to get in water polo shape before the season starts: There are 6 more weeks of IM Polo at Northfield, 6-7:30 Wednesday mornings. There will also be open pool/lap swim time from 3:15 to 5:15 PM every day there is school during the two weeks prior to the season. See the season calendar for specific dates.
2009 Season (1/19) The game and practice schedule is posted- please start planning with it in mind. ACT & SAT dates are listed, with both during season and out of season alternatives. Please note all three in-season dates have conflicts, but there is one of each in June, after the season. There will be an organizational meeting soon! Keep checking for date, time & place- will be posted ASAP.
2009 Game Schedule (1/7) Barring any more changes from other schools, our game schedule is about set and posted in calendar and schedule form. We are working to get a JV tournament or two, but that is all at this time. The practice schedule should be completed and posted shortly after finals (good luck on those!).
Happy New Year! (1/02) Before the season starts, all athletes must take the "impact test" which is a simple test to establish a "baseline" reading for testing concussions. This is a new policy this year and will be done for all athletes, in all sports, at al llevels. Please read more on how, when and where you should do this by following the the link from this sentence.
NOT SO FAST! (12/10) Just when we thought it was almost done... we got a contract for the St. Ignatious Tournament that is a different date than what we had on our schedule. We have to re-work some things and a revised calendar will be up soon. The St. Ignatius Tournament is now 4/17 & 18.
Almost done! (10/06) The 2009 game schedule is almost complete- for now! Only one more varsity game to schedule, see the calendar page for the current 2009 schedule (as we know it). There is the possibility of some more changes, including the addition of a JV tournament at Barrington- which is noted on the calendar, but not included in the game count yet. Most tournament schedules are typically not released until a week or two before.
Updates (9/17) Frequent visitors to this site have probably noticed many changes/updates in recent weeks. When the school changed to the new web site in August, many of the pages on this web site needed to be changed, as well as many updates to it. If you are planning your Spring already, check the web site frequently, as the schedule is being updated often, we still have 4 games to schedule as noted on the bottom of the calendar.
Email (9/17) Many players have either changed email addresses in the last year, did not give one, or for some other reason the address we have is not working. If you intend to play water polo in the 2009 season, and have not received at least 1 email about IM water polo from Coach Leissner this month, please drop a quick note to this email so you may be added to the list of players.
IM Water Polo (9/15) Intramural water polo started on Wednesday, September 10. It is run at the Northfield pool from 6 to 7:30 AM, and this year it is FREE! You must still sign up, forms (with all dates) are available at the pool, IM office, or athletic office.
Summer League Tournament Results (7/15/08) Nice job at both tournaments! The boys finished third at the consolation tournament, losing by 1 goal in the semi-final game to Shamrock (St. Pats). The girls lost 2-10, to eventual champions Chicago Park District (Mother McAuley) in the first game, soundly beat West Suburban (Naperville area) 20-6 in their second game, and then fell to Lyons2 in the sixth place game 7-9.Complete results can be found on the Illinois Water Polo web site. The last night of Summer Fun Water Polo is July 17th.
Summer League Tournament (7/7/08) Posted on the Summer Fun/Club page is the tournament bracket/information for the girls championship tournament to be held at Fenwick on July 13th. We earned the spot after going 3-1 in summer league play with wins over Cardinal (Mundelein), North Shore (Loyola), and DUWP (BG, Hersey, Prospect, Wheeling). Our only loss was to NIPC (Stevenson) in our first game of the summer. We will play 3 games, our first being at 8 AM and the last starting sometime between 4 and 7 PM.
IHSA Team Award (7/7/08) The final award for the 2008 season was made official last week as the IHSA awarded our team with the Team Academic Achievement Award. After the second semester grades were official, the team GPA set a program record 3.37 average in earning the award for the seventh straight year (every year it has been awarded). See the history page for a list of all awards.
All-Americans (6/30/08) Congratulations to Ryanne O'Donnell and Kate Hilbrant for being named NISCA All-American Water Polo Players! They are the first Trevian girl All-Americans since 2003 and mark the first time ever that the girl's team has had multiple honorees in the same season!
Summer Fun (6/18/08) A link to the Summer Fun/New Trier Water Polo Club schedule and game sign-up form has been added to the home page. Other information will be posted there too. A link to American Water Polo has been added to the links page too!
2009 Captains (6/02/08) After a two thirds voter turnout, it is clear that the team recognizes that this is another very strong and deep junior class to choose from when voting which girls should lead the 2009 campaign. Given the teams input, the amount of work to be done and task of coordinating it all, please continue to support the team and next years captains: Nora Boneham, Ward McNulty, Ryanne O'Donnell, & Francesca Palmer. It will take a TEAM effort over the next year to be a successful TEAM next season! Check here often and support your team activities that the captains will be setting up and leading. Opportunity to succeed means little without the desire to prepare to succeed!
2009 Calendar (6/02/08) There are only 7 more games to schedule & some more to be confirmed. Check for updates on the calendar page.
Great Camp Opportunity (5/23/08) Elite Polo Camps is offeing a water polo camp for girls age 14-18 at Lincoln-Way High School June 14-18.
Post-season Meetings (5/22/08) The post-season meeting sign-up schedule is on Coach Leissner's office door at Winnetka. Please sign up for a time and take some time to fill out the form in order to have a more productive meeting.
Captains 2009 (5/22/08) Vote for the 2009 team captains by replying to the email or stopping by Coach Leissner's office at Winnetka between 7 AM and 4:30 PM. If you did not recieve the email last night, send one to, or stop by and correct your email address with Coach Leissner. The 2009 captains will be announced sometime after finals.
Locker Clean-out (5/22/08) Please clean out your pool locker before Tuesday, May 27. After Memorial Day, all lockers will be emptied and contents disposed of.
All State Awards (5/20/08) Congratulations to Kate Hilbrant (second team) and Ryanne O'Donnell (honorable mention) for being named to the 40 member All-State team for 2008. They were selected from the 112 players from the 8 All-Sectional teams (14 from each of 8 sectionals). Congratulations also to Melissa Meyer, as she was one of three finalist for the Senior Schoolastic Award, which is an award given each year to one outstanding scholar-athlete. The All-State banquet is 5/29 at the Diplomat West in Elmhurst, follow the link for more information or to register to attend.
Summer League (5/14/08) Information about the summer water polo league was emailed out to all team members today. In order to enter a New Trier team, we must first have enough players signed up for Summer Fun. All players must also register for American Water Polo if you want to play league games.
Awards (5/14/08) The first of the post-season awards were chosen and announced last night. Congratulations to Mandy Ferguson, Kate Hilbrant, and Ryanne O'Donnell for all being unanamously selected to the 14 member CSL All-Conference team by the conference coaches. Their individual honors reflect both their individual talents as well as our TEAM success. All three are also All-Sectional picks and will be nominated for All-State award consideration which will be voted on next week, after state the tournament.
After the Academics (5/14/08) Thank you to all the girls that helped with talking to a record 46 incoming freshmen who filled out interest forms!
End of Season (5/12/08) After defeating Prospect in an epic 3 overtime sudden-victory game on Friday night (W 7-6), we just didn't have enough to beat Loyola in the sectional final Satruday afternoon (L 6-9). Despite an earlier ending than we were hoping for, we have plenty to celebrate at our banquet on Wednesday, May 21, at Michigan Shores Club. Contact Sharon Meyer or Margarita Bartels if you did not recieve your banquet invitation. RSVP to Mrs. Meyer ASAP- before Friday please! Before the awards can be handed out, your caps need to be turned into Coach Leissner at the Winnetka pool (anytime between 7 AM & 4 PM), and bags to the ladies in KW locker room at either campus.
Varsity CSL Champions! (5/5/08) Congratualtions to the defending CSL Varsity Conference Champions! Two great games against GBS and Evanston at Deerfield. See the resultls page and the history pages for more information.
Great Finishes (5/1/08) Congratulations to all freshmen and JV players- you have contributed to the best records on the JV and F/S levels ever (see History page)! We had more girls playing in more games this year than ever before, which shows how deep and talented this program is this year! Those players that have finished their season, please turn in your bag to the locker room attendant on your campus, and return your caps to Coach Leissner at the Winnetka pool (see calendar for practice days and times or during the school day). Please continue to support your Trevian teammates at the Conference tournament at Deerfield on Saturday and the Sectional tournament at GBN next week (see schedule). Hope to see you all at the games and banquet on May 21st.
F/S CSL (4/28/08) Congratulations to both the sophomore and freshman teams for their outstanding performances at the F/S CSL at GBN over the weekend. The sophomores finished second to Evanston while the freshmen finised third after losing to Evanston in the semi-final game. The freshman finish was the highest ever in that tounrament. Great season freshmen!
Rough Draft 2009 (4/23/08) Many have asked about the 2009 schedule, so here is the ROUGH DRAFT of what can be found. This is based on the 2008-09 New Trier & IHSA calendars online, and the current copy of the CSL schedule. Special notes: Spring Break is week 4 of our season- it has been week 5 since 2004- so it may affect standing dates of other games and tournaments. Maine South will have a team next year- they will be a required CSL opponent- which means one game from our 2008 schedule will have to be dropped, but we will have 3 games guarunteed at the Varsity CSL tournament. ACT dates are correct, SAT dates are not available yet. Sophomores should avoid taking the ACT on 4/4/09, the other dates are listed at the bottom of calendar. If you can, please tentatively plan to be back for the second weekend of break (3/27 & 28), gut feeling is we will have something on that weekend. This is all subject to change, and some will as non-conference games are not scheduled until later, but this is the best we can tell you now.
Week 9 Preview (4/21/08) Please note the calendar for this week is unique- getting ready for Fr/So CSL! For some it is tough, others pretty relaxed- plan ahead! Tuesday- no AM for anyone, but an early out 9th for the roadtrip out to Naperville Central for V & JV (regular practice for Fr). Wednesday- delayed and shorter AM for Fr & So only at Winnetka, varsity meeting at 3, regular PM practice times. Thursday- Fr & So AM at Winnetka again, regular time (6-7:20/40), regular PM for Fr, & game vs Latin at home for V & JV. Friday- regular schedule. Saturday- Fr/So CSL, no practice for Jr/Sr- go cheer on the young ones!
Week 8 Review (4/21/08) Combined we were 7-1-1 and we all think we could do better! Varsity led St. Ignatius (number 3 team on illpolo) 5-1 before falling 7-8, then tied Lyons (number 6 team), and narrowly defeated Naperville No & Waubonsie Valley. End of the season is almost here, and we're almost ready!
F/S CSL Inv. @GBN (4/16/08) The Freshman & Sophomore CSL Invitational information is posted. We have two teams entered and are tentatively going to refer to the sophomores as the Green team and the freshmen as the Blue team. We are still awaiting responses from all players before making a final descision. Bus time for all players is 8 AM on Essex Ave (Gates Gym @Winnetka campus). The last possible game for both teams is at 2:00 PM.
Summer Camp Opportunity (4/9/08) Evanston will be hosting the Brown coaching staff for their camp that was at GBN last year, now called "Bruno Aquatic". The camp will be limited to 30 players due to the reduced amount of space available. New Trier students (and some others) have a chance to register early, but it will not last long. Follow the link or ask Coach Leissner for a flyer.
St. Ignatius Tournament (4/8/08) The tournament information/schedule has arrived for the Maroon & Gold St. Ignatius varsity tournament. The level of the teams in this tournament has improved greatly over the years, and this year may rival the Fenwick tournament! Note that the games are scheduled as 6 minute quarters with one time-out per game, with all games in the small pool at UIC.
NISCA Scholar Team Award (4/5/08) For the second time since the inception of the award in 2003, the New Trier Girl's Water Polo team has earned GOLD honor as a National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association Scholar Team. This years team raised the all-time high weighted team GPA to 3.784- see the history page for reference or follow the link to NISCA for more information about the award.
Calendar update (4/3//08) The calendar has been updated to correct the morning practice times on a couple of days. Generally speaking, after away games, morning practice is delayed 30 minutes, but not after home games. Sorry for the confusion caused by the copy & pasted calendar from last year.
Spring Break Recap (3/31/08) We played some great water polo against some great teams at the Mike Murphy Memorial Tournament. With no timeouts and shortened breaks between periods, a lot of players got some valuable expereince in a very tough environment. We learned some lessons that will only make us better in the end. An 0-2-2 record provided us with the knowledge that we have some work to do, and if we do, we are confident that we will be able to play with the big girls at the end of the season. Desire to win means little without the desire to prepare to win!
Fenwick Revised! (3/20/08) The Fenwick Mike Murphy Memorial Tournament has been REVISED and posted. It's now an even better opportunity for us! Bus on Friday at 3:30 PM, Saturday at Noon.
Week 3 Recap (3/17/08) Another good week at all levels. Everyone that was able, got to play at least two games, most more. All levels were a combined 9-1, with the F/S taking second at the Northside tournament. Helping out a shorthanded Northside team provided even more playing time for several girls. Wheeling won the tournament after an overtime win against Buffalo Grove. Wheeling trailed most of the game, but a last second goal sent their game to overtime for the chance to win.
Senior 411 (3/14/08) Reminder to seniors: "All senior athletes exempt from Kinetic Wellness classes because of participation in sports, must return to their KW class – Team Block and Lifetime Activities on Monday, March 17 and all other KW classes on Tuesday, March 18 for a mandatory meeting as part of our continuing health component. If athletes are not present, they will lose their exemption and be required to return to their KW classes. If you have any questions, please contact your Kinetic Wellness teacher."
Great first week of Games! (3/10/08) Not only did we play well enough to win a lot of games (2-0-1, best showing ever at Fenwick F/S!), most of our 60 players got to play in at least one game. Everyone should have that opportunity this week. Thank you to the Bartels' for hosting a wonderful parent party Sunday evening. It was very nice to meet or catch up with many parents.
Bags (3/6/08) Sophomores, Juniors & Seniors- please remember to check out your bag today in the KW locker room. Spread the word/remind everyone! Monday during the day or before pictures, is the last chance for all levels.
Parent/Athlete Meeting (3/3/08) After the intra-squad game tonight (4:30-5:30), there is a meeting for all parents and athletes in the Bauman Student Center (the scrounge, in the basement at Winnetka), to fill out emergency forms, and other important information. The meeting should start around 5:45 and be done by 6:45 PM.
Calendar Update (2/26/08) There were a couple of minor updates. The one to note is next Tuesday, normal time instead of late for V/jv. Calendars passed out at practice had this change already, but it was not posted here.
2nd Order (2/26/08) The second chance order form and information letter are available here, or pick them up at practice. Orders with payment is due Wednesday, March 5th. Please note that not all equipment is available in the second order. For example, personalized caps are not available, but you can still get team swim caps without your name.
Almost! (2/20/08) The 2008 season is almost here- are you ready?! Make sure you have your permit to participate before the first practice on Monday, February 25th, or you will not be allowed in the water. Monday morning is optional, but highly recommended. Monday afternoon is the first required practice for everyone at Winnetka. After school, all players should change into swim suits and put on a T-shirt in the girls pool locker room, then bring a pencil up to the pool balcony by 3:40 PM.
More updates (2/15/08) There have been a few other minor updates on the schedule & calendar. Reminder: there are only 3 school days next week- do you have your permit to participate? Please contact Coach Leissner if you did not get the email of this update & reminder. The fun begins in 10 days!
Calendar Update (2/14/08) The calendar has a couple of updates: our game with Loyola has moved from April 9th to the 11th, it also reflects the boys dates changed, as well as the adjustment to finals due to the snow day.
IM/Lap/Open Swim (2/12/08) The Northfield pool is open after school from 3:15 to 5:15 PM for lap or open swim this week and next (until the season starts). Ball play will be allowed if space permits, with permission of the supervisor.
Calendar Update (2/8/08) Some minor changes have been made to the calendar, most noteably the team banquet is now tentatively scheduled for May 21st (instead of the 22nd). There may be more, as Loyola has contacted us to say they have a conflict on the current scheduled date. Any other changes will be posted ASAP.
Team Meeting (1/23/08) Organizational meetings will take place on Wednesday, 1/30, 7:15 AM at Northfield in the pool balcony OR 3:30 PM at Winnetka in G304 (meet at pool locker room if you don't know where G304 is). Contact Coach Leissner if you can not attend or you miss it.
Pre-season Conditioning (1/23/08) The captains will be running a pre-season dry-land program on Mondays & Wednesdays starting 1/28. Meet by the Girl's pool locker room after school. Wear appropriate attire for indoor training (t-shirt, shorts, athletic shoes). They will go until between 4:30 and 5:00 PM.
Calendar Update (1/21/08) A draft of the Season Calendar with the practice schedule on it has been posted. Please let Coach Leissner know if you have any questions or notice any errors. Printed copies will be available from Coach Leissner at the meetings and once the season begins.
Clinic Opportunity (12/14/07) There will be a water polo clinic offered at Carthage College in Kenosha WI during winter break: December 28-30th, in two sessions. Please contact Coach Leissner if you are considering this clinic, as there are some IHSA rules that allow only two players from any school to attend each session. Follow the link for more information about the clinic- it sounds pretty good.
Out of Season Information (12/6) Follow the link for updated information if you can't get to it from the home page.
IM Water Polo (12/05) The Winter session of intramural water polo program has started! Wednesday mornings at Northfield from 6 to 7:30. Only $10 per season (Nov. 28-Feb. 20). Forms are available in the athletic office, IM board, or at the pool. Great way to meet other players, learn the game, have fun!
IHSA Team Academic Achievement Award (7/18/07) It is now official, the team unweighted GPA for 2007 was 3.20, the second highest since the award started! Congratulations on the team award.
2008 Captains (5/30/07) After a 75% voter turnout, it is clear that the team recognizes that there is a very strong and deep junior class to choose from when voting which girls should lead the 2008 campaign. Given the teams input, the amount of work to be done and task of coordinating it all, please continue to support the team and next years captains: Katherine Bartels, Mandy Ferguson, Kate Hilbrant, & Melissa Meyer. We've seen their ability in and out of the water, but remember it will still take a TEAM effort over the next nine months to be a successful TEAM next season! Check here often and support your team activities that the captains will be setting up and leading. Opportunity to succeed means little without the desire to prepare to succeed!
End of School Year (5/29/07) Remember to clean out your pool locker by Friday June 1st, otherwise they will be cleared out for you next week (locks cut & contents disposed of). Lockers may be re-inhabitated after June 11th. There are only a few caps and bags still out, please turn them in or pay for them ASAP. Fee bills have gone or are going out soon. Congratulations again Seniors, and good luck on finals to the rest of you!
All-State (5/22/07) Congratulations to Blake Bartter & Kate Hilbrant for being selected to the All-State Team which represents the top 40 players in the state. Blake was named to the 3rd team and Kate honorable mention.These players were chosen from the 112 All-Sectional players which are the best of all the 64 teams in the state.
All-Sectional (5/18/07) Congratulations to Blake Bartter, Charlotte Harris, & Kate Hilbrant for being selected to the 14 member All-Sectional team by the coaches from our setional. These three girls will now be candidates for All-State, which will be selected Monday, May 21. Mandy Ferguson was honorable mention All-Sectional.
Awards (5/16/07) The first of the post-season awards were chosen and announced last night. Congratulations to Blake Bartter, Mandy Ferguson, Charlotte Harris, & Kate Hilbrant for all being unanamously selected to the 14 member CSL All-Conference team by the conference coaches. Their individual honors reflect both their individual talents as well as our TEAM success. All-Sectional and All-State awards will be announced within the next week and posted here.
Sectional final (5/14/07) After defeating the Hersey Huskies 14-6 on Thursday, and surviving the St. Viator Lions on Friday (8-6) the Trevians just did not have enough to get by the Ramblers from Loyola in the sectional final on Saturday (5-14). Congratulations on a hard fought game and a great season! Go watch the state finals at Stevenson this week and be inspired for the upcoming seasons (summer, high school or college).
After the Academics (5/8/07) Monday, May 14th is the date for "After the Academics Night". 7-8:30 PM in the F building at Northfield. Most of you probably remember this night as the "recruiting night" for the incoming freshmen. Please contact Coach Leissner if you are willing and able to work our table. It usually is a fun night, with a chance meet the potential new players and socialize with current players from all sports. All you have to do is asnwer questions and gather information from the potential new players.
CSL Champs! (5/7/07) For the first time ever, New Trier has repeated as conference champions in water polo! OK, there has only been a tournament since 2002, but this does even up the total number of titles with Evanston at 3 each. It was a great team effort throughout the tournament as 29 girls saw game time and 14 scored at least one goal. The biggest advantage with the strength in numbers was against Evanston when the 8th player (the rest of the team on the bench) really got into the game with their cheering, and made the Evanston pool our pool! Let's make the GBN pool our pool too- Wed at 7 PM against Hersey.
For all us visual people and those that are not getting good information from their daughters, here is the tournament information and bracket so you can figure out all the possibilities. See below for bus times. Good luck to everyone and have fun!
College Shout-out (4/30) The University of Michigan defeated the defending National Champions,
Summer already?! (4/25/07) Hopefully many are planning summer activities that include water polo. Please ask a coach if you did not get, or were not able to print the Brown Water Polo Camp information that was sent out via email. This camp will be offered at GBN this summer and is an excellent opportunity for our players, but for a limited time, because there is a limited number of spaces- sign up before it's too late! If that does not work out for your schedule, please look at doing any of a large number of other water polo programs in addition to the Summer Fun Program at the Winnetka campus. Sumer Fun will be offered at the same times as the past years, but with more flexibility. Masters/senior/high school program is still 9:00 to 10:30 PM, but girls/boys may come any of the four nights that work best for them (Mon-Thur). Games will be scheduled if there is enough interest expressed! There are several leagues we can join, but we need players to commit to playing.
Welcome to the 2007 season! Hope you found the information meeting brief but informative. This site should become a better reference of information- as soon as I master the new software! This will be a very fun, fast season- Coach Leissner
Post-Season Meetings (5/22) All players are encouraged to sign-up for a post-season meeting with Coach Leissner. The schedule is posted on his office door at Winnetka. Print the short questionnaire and fill it out to have a good basis for the meeting.
All-Conference (5/17/06) Congratulations to Lucy Abrams, Allie Hamm, Andrea Jilling , and Molly Twigg for being selected All CSL by the conference coaches.
All-State (5/16/06) Congratulations to Allie Hamm and Andrea Jilling for being selected as All-State players for this season. Allie was named to the second team and Andrea honorable mention. There are only 40 players in Illinois named All-State!
All-Sectional Team (5/12/06) Congratulations to the following players for selection to All-Sectional teams: First team- Allie Hamm; Second team- Molly Twigg & Andrea Jilling; Honorable Mention- Blake Bartter & Lucy Abrams. These honors reflect both their individual talents as well as team success.
Last week of season (5/11/06) Free play time this week, Monday thru Thursday, 3:30 to 5:00 at Winnetka. Monday will feature a junior challenge of the seniors with any freshmen and sophomores helping out. Boys invited the rest of the week.
Sectional Final (5/8/06) The highs and lows of the season were summarized by the varsity team experience on Saturday, May 6th. No bus, so we drove. Limited warm up, so we swam fast. LA had a force, so we drew 3 ejections on her. We earned our chances, but came up just short. What a ride on all levels!
CSL Champs! (5/1/06) Congratulations Varsity Central Suburban League Champions! A thrilling 6-5 win over Evanston in the championship game sealed the change of the guard (Evanston won the last three years). Wins over Highland Park and Glenbrook North in pool play were pretty exciting too. On to Sectionals at GBN to face GBN again, this Thursday, May 5th, at 7:00 PM.
Collegiate Club Nationals (5/1/06) Another great opportunity to check out college women's water polo will be held at Northwestern University this weekend. See the schedule. There are many Trevian connections again, can you name at least 4?
CSL/Sectional Roster (4/27/06) Congratulations to all the lower level teams on a great season! Some of the players have been "called up" to the Conference Tournament Squad this weekend, and a few will make the sectional squad also. We are allowed to have more girls on the roster and on deck at conference than at sectionals/state. The roster will remain the same for sectionals/state, but the number of players at practice and dressed for games will be reduced next week, to 21, per IHSA guidelines. The players not dressing will be listed as alternates, and allowed to be substituted if needed, but not required to come to practice.
End of Season (4/27/06) As players are finishing their season, please remember to turn in your caps as soon as possible to a coach, and your bags to the equipment ladies in the locker room of your respective campus. Those players waived out of Kinetic Wellness classes for water polo must return to class the Monday after their last game (May 1st for those not going to sectionals). The sectional roster will be turned in today as it appears above.
Big Ten's @NU (4/20/06) Follow the link to the Big 10 Women's Water Polo Club Championships being hosted by Northwestern this weekend. NTGWP connections: Coach Susie James plays for Northwestern and 2004 graduate and former captain Bethany Teska is the founder and player on the Michigan club team.
Academic All-Americans (4/17/06) Congratulations to seniors Lucy Abrams, Cathie Franklin, Andrea Jilling, Julie Magliulo, Lauren McGrath, and Molly Twigg for being named NISCA Academic All-Americans.
Summer Planning (3/20) Many have already asked about summer programs. There two clubs that many of our girls play on (Stevenson & Evanston) which run practice at night and have some league games week nights and tournaments on the weekend. There are several good camps in the summer, and a couple that New Trier players have frequented. There is usually a group that goes to the Navy camp, and I have been told there is a large group going to another camp this summer too. I hope to get more information on this soon, and post it on this site.
We also will run our Summer Fun program for girls/boys high school players & age groupers. Last year we added a masters program (high school, college & older) that went well, but I'm not sure if it's status for this summer yet. Our program has been set up so that the high school players can play here and at one of the clubs that plays tournaments (USWP) since we don't- yet. For more information and some links, see the "out of season" link on the front page.
Web Site Clean Up (3/14) In trying to clean up/out files for this web site, some links were altered, thus did not work. Most have been fixed, if there are anymore that do not work, please contact Coach Leissner.
Miss the Athlete/Parent Information Meeting? (3/9) If you missed the meeting on Monday, please make arrangements with your daughter's coach to come in and fill out the emergency form, sign the athletic code, and go over the team expectations.
Athlete/Parent Information Meeting (3/3) There will be a mandatory Athlete & Parent meeting on Monday, March 6th at 6:00 PM in the Bauman Student Center (basement level at the Winnetka Campus). Formerly known as "the code meeting", there will be other important information disseminated and forms filled out. There will be an intra-squad game from 4:30 to 5:40 for anyone interested.
First Mandatory Practice (2/23/06) Monday morning is optional, but highly recommended. Monday afternoon is the first required practice for everyone at Winnetka. After school, all players should change into swim suits and put on a T-shirt in the girls pool locker room, then bring a pencil up to the pool balcony by 3:40 PM.
Team Academic Awards (6/27) With the end of the school year, grades finalized and GPA's calculated, the state and national team academic awards have also been calculated. New Trier Girls Water Polo has earned recognition each year for both the IHSA Team Academic Achievement Award and the NISCA Team Scholar Award since their inception four and three years ago respectively. Congratulations to all team members, since this is a team award that demonstrates commitment in the classroom as well as in the pool!
Navy Camp Discount (5/9) Are you registered for, or thinking about attending the Navy Water Polo Camp? There is a $50 discount available for all New Trier players. Contact Tina Bradley, Camp Administrator at 410-293-3155 or bradley@usna.edu if you have any questions.
Email (1/22) Many players have changed email addresses in the last year, did not give one, or for some other reason the address we have is not working. If you have not received at least 2 emails from Coach Leissner this month, please drop a quick note to this email so you may be added to the list of players.
History Page Additions Please help update the history page! We've added a column for captains and a listing of alumni who've played in college for possible contacts for information. If you have additions or corrections, please contact Coach Leissner via email or voicemail.
Rules and Referee Signals There have been some questions about resources to better understand the rules and referee signals for water polo. There are several places to look, but no guarantee that they are updated. There are subtle changes almost every year that make these quick reference guides difficult to keep up to date. The New Trier Boy's Water Polo web site has both a spectators guide and explanations of referee signals. Our links page will get you to the boys site. Link to Rules page: http://www.newtrier.k12.il.us/athletics/sports/waterpolo/rules.htm