I had the pleasure of meeting Coach Lim and the rest of the Women’s Water Polo team. They are a hard-working and determined team with one common goal. For such a young team they are very passionate about their sport. 

Coach Todd Lim

As I spoke with Coach Todd Lim, you could see the love he has for the game. Lim has been involved with Rio Hondo for a long time. Whether that be as an assistant coach when he attended Rio Hondo as a student. Even during grad school in the nineties. He then took over  from 2000-2002 as head coach and still continued to teach here at Rio Hondo. When the time came yet again, he stepped up to be head coach. Lim got right back on that pool deck. Like Lim says “Rio has always been home.”  For it just being Lim by himself, he is an amazing coach and hopefully he can recruit an assistant coach that he is in desperate need of. Contact Coach Lim if interested.

Valentina Orozco

Valentina Orozco is a second year here at Rio Hondo. Orozco is the team goalie. She has been playing water polo for four years. Orozoco identifies herself as a shy person but “The team has helped me make friends and have a good college life.”  She told me that they aren’t always in it to just build and grow as a team. Just from speaking with her shows that any sport, not just water polo, can really help student athletes bond. Possibly even build friendship that could even last a lifetime

Joslyn Larson

Joslyn Larson has been playing water polo for six years now. Larson is an attacker/center for the team. I asked what Lim is like from an athlete’s perspective . She said that “He dedicates practices and drills to one person and has them working on something. It’s really helpful so we can give attention to everyone.”   This shows that Lim is a coach that not only wants the team to succeed but always helps every individual player improve in their own way. 

Amara Elsayed

Amara Elsayed has been playing for about six years now.  Eslsayed is an attacker/utility for the team. Even though Elsayed is only a first year here at Rio Hondo,  she has been practicing with the team since middle school. Water polo is definitely no easy sport. Like Eslayes said “It’s very draining no matter how long you play it never gets any easier but it’s super fun when you know the rules and you just have to push through everything.” You can see that these girls are  just enjoying themselves and that’s all that really matters when it comes to playing water polo.

June Babishoff

June Babishoff has been playing for seven years.  It’s her third year here at Rio Hondo. Babishoff is an attacker/center for the team. I asked her if she could tell me something about Rio Hondo Women’s Water Polo and she said that  “We all play to the best of our ability and we keep trying even when we are tired because there are not that many of us.” This shows the dedication and effort these girls put in. They work very hard despite not having as many players.

Sadly, a lot of the girls got their seasons cut short due to Covid. Yet it hasn’t stopped them from loving the game. From speaking to these girls, you can tell they are a very close and tight-knit group of girls. With these girls being so young, they can only get better individually and as a team. I can’t wait to see how they progress and grow throughout the season. I wish them the best of luck.