By Lindsey Boyd (@lindsboyd3):
Pick three names from the men’s water polo roster and there’s a good chance at least two belong to international or Southern Californian players.
Consider junior driver Cade Baldridge and sophomore driver Ashley Castle, for example.
Baldridge swam in the Laguna Beach waters of Southern California while Castle was raised 5,365 miles away in Epsom, England. But water polo’s the same sport everywhere…right? Well, not quite.
“It’s much harder to get involved in water polo especially in England because we don’t have quite the funding and the program set up,” Castle said.
Life across the pond meant Castle was competing in a sport not nearly as widespread as it is in California. But, that didn’t stop him from ruling the waters with his club team –– Crystal Palace Beacon –– and finding his school, San Jose State.
Around the age of eight, Castle’s swim team started playing water polo as a “side thing.” Despite many kids not showing up for practice, he stood out as a player with high standards who consistently attended practice. The team aspect drew Castle into the game and his coach, Nick Buller, got him in contact with SJSU head coach Bruce Watson.
“It was quite a big culture shock but I’ve enjoyed absolutely every minute of it,” Castle said of playing for SJSU.
Baldridge, on the other hand, kept his friends close and his competition closer.
“It was really competitive,” Baldridge said. “You could tell how good you were based on that because the top players were in your area. You are going to get the best conditioning, the best shape by playing against all of them.”
Having Scott Baldridge, a former UCLA water polo player, as your father and Mackenzie Baldridge, a former UC Santa Barbara water polo, as your older sister, Baldridge was bound to be a fish in the water.
Southern California is the hub of water polo. From 10-and-unders, to club and high school, some of the best players in the nation come from the lower West Coast region. In fact, Baldridge has been rivaled against some Division 1 players for more than 10 years.
One player that he’s known since he was little, Rion Parenteau, is now Baldridge’s teammate and roommate.
“I know at least one person on each team if not more,” Baldridge said. “It’s kind of cool for us to see us literally build from being 10-and-unders to all the way in college we play against these kids. It’s pretty fun.”
Most players fly to California to swim with the cream of the crop. Castle is one of the 10 players on the men’s water polo roster who chose to do just that.
San Jose State has such an international pull because Watson is recruiting heavily in other countries. Most notably, freshman Jacob Mercep, who is the first Spartan to ever be named Golden Coast Conference Player of the Week, came from Croatia.
“That’s the only way to build is get good international kids here,” Watson said. “Elevate the program, develop it and then the us kids see it and go ‘oh hey they are winning’ we want to go.”
Baldridge started the inaugural water polo team three years ago and Castle came the following year. They’ve seen the team rise in strength since bringing in more international recruits.
“People coming from different backgrounds internationally, it brings a lot of experience to the team and it gives everyone feedback that they can get from all these different cultures,” Baldridge said
No matter where they grew up, the men’s water polo players are united by one thing –– the drive to improve beyond where they started.