What exactly does it take to turn a team in the right direction? Junior Varsity Polo might have the answer. In daily grueling morning and afternoon practices, eleven girls have been working hard to add skill to the strong knowledge base they’ve built since middle school. Under the guidance and instruction of a new coach, they are succeeding.

“We’re improving with fundamentals like baseline skills,” JV player Isabel Albatis said. “I’m shooting and scoring more.”

Along the way, the girls have learned that encouraging advancement only comes with tough physical and academic sacrifices.

“Getting up in the morning and working out and swimming is a challenge,” Albaitis said. “I’m sore all day but it’s worth it because I’m improving.”

For JV and Varsity goalie Suzy Deems, who napped during the reading portion of her SAT, the consequences are more severe.

“Always giving 100% effort and trying to balance school with it is hard,” Deems admitted.

With the time they’ve spent and effort they’ve put into their sport, the up-and-coming team isn’t afraid to have high expectations for themselves and their team as a whole.

“My goal at the beginning of the season was to shoot and score every game,” Albatis said.

Similar to Albatis, Deems also wants to do as well as she possibly can this season.

“Our team goal is to win States,” she added.

Unfortunately, victory still remains elusive when the team faces their major rivals.

“Rockford and Hudsonville are our toughest competition,” Deems said. “If we beat them, we’ll show how good we are.”

On April 18, JV polo took a hard loss to Rockford at home with a final score of 4-18. All East goals were scored within the first quarter of the game. During the last three quarters, Rockford took a commanding lead that the East players were unable to surpass.

“You need to be able to persevere,” Albaitis said. “This sport takes so much out of you and it’s the ones who keep going who do really well.”

At the end of the day, however, what keeps the JV Polo players in their demanding sport is not brute determination but each other.

“I like the team dynamic,” Albaitis said. “We’re really close this year because we have such a small number of people.”

Deems also unhesitantly expresses her love for the team.

“We’re all there for each other,” she said. “We’re all dying together.”