Recruitment not always easy for teams

Five members on the water polo team are from California. None are from Indiana, a state where high schools do not have water polo as a varsity or club sport. This can make for some challenges when fielding a team here at IU.\nCoach Barry King said the majority of the better water polo players are on the coasts. He said he is able to recruit from there, but his troubles lie in finding walk-ons.\n"The lack of Indiana players hurts when looking for a quality walk-on," King said. "They don't always have the best experience that someone from the coast might have."\nKing said the water polo travel schedule helps in the recruiting process. The team routinely travels out to California for tournaments. King said the team's success at those tournaments helps him out.\nSenior Kirsten Mayberry is a team member from California. She said King talked to her high school coach after seeing her in a match. She said it was a tough adjustment for her at first.\n"The first semester was rough in getting to know people," Mayberry said. "As I got to know the team better, it was an easier fit. I knew the team was growing, and I wanted to be a part of that."\nSenior Louanne Hovater, a Texas native, agreed there was an initial adjustment, but she really liked the school.\n"The water polo program was one that I felt I could grow in," Hovater said. "I just really liked the school. It took a while to get used to the people though."\nKing believes the school's reputation helps in the recruitment process. Academics and the campus attract many people to the school.\nJunior Kristin Stanford is from Cincinnati and chose the school based on location. She said she also chose IU because of the success of the team.\n"Everyone wants to come to a good program," Stanford said. "The more we demonstrate that, the easier it will be to get recruits."\nKing knows that it comes down to winning. A winning team will attract players from all over the country.\n"We could have the best campus, the best academics, the best of all of that, but the bottom line is that our team has to be competitive," King said. "Right now we are consistently competitive with the best team. We have to get to the point were we consistently beat them. I think we're on our way"