Cady, Natcher building first-year polo program
Freshmen Jennifer Cady and Stephanie Natcher
hope to take UCLA to top of water polo charts
By Emmanuelle Ejercito
When asked about playing for a first-year team, excitement fills
the voices of UCLA women’s water polo team members Jennifer Cady
and Stephanie Natcher.
"We want to build the name," Natcher said. "We want to be the
ones that started a program that is going to be number one in the
future."
Cady agrees.
"When you see our basketball team win and you see our volleyball
team be number one in the nation, you want to be up there too,"
Cady said. "You walk through the Hall of Fame and you see all those
pictures, you’re like, ‘I want our team to be up there and I want
our team to have that trophy.’"
And Cady and Natcher are the ones that will help the Bruins get
there.
Just as the San Francisco 49ers have Steve Young and Jerry Rice,
the UCLA women’s water polo team has Cady and Natcher. The two
Bruins are the main offensive weapons for the team.
"We rely a lot on them offensively," UCLA head coach Guy Baker
said. "I think that they are working together better as time goes
on. They are new to each other so that takes time. Jen, at the two
meter (position), and Stephanie are somewhat like a quarter back
and receiver, with Jen being the quarterback and Stephanie as the
receiver."
Cady says she feels that she and Natcher have developed a
chemistry throughout the season.
"We’ve connected a lot," Cady said. "So much now than before
when we both didn’t know what we were going to do for the team. Now
every play up and down the pool it seems that we click."
Aside from a strong offensive tandem, both players also provide
stability and experience to the team.
Cady began playing water polo in seventh grade for the Radian
Water Polo club at her all-girls high school, Castilleja, in Palo
Alto. Although Cady has no swimming background, she decided to try
water polo.
"I was bored one summer so I decided to play," Cady said.
Cady is a first-year student; however, this is not the first
time she has played against college teams. Since her high school
team was the only female program around, her team played schools
like Stanford and California. Her high school team also played in
college tournaments.
After high school, Cady was set to go to UC San Diego.
Fortunately for the Bruins, her father told Cady to keep her
options open. She did, and decided to come to UCLA.
"I love what Guy wanted to do with the program," Cady said. "He
wanted to win, and I wanted to be on a new team."
Meanwhile, Natcher had a different high school experience.
An avid swimmer since she was 5, Natcher decided to begin
playing water polo at 12 because it required swimming. Natcher was
the only female to play water polo for Marina High School in
Huntington Beach.
"I learned a lot from them because they were guys," Natcher
said. "But at the same time, it was hard for me because I didn’t
get as much playing time as I hoped."
Her interest in water polo became more intense when she began
playing on a women’s water polo club. Although she says she was
glad to have played against men, she felt that she contributed more
when she joined a women’s team.
"I definitely like (playing against men) because it taught me
how to be aggressive," Natcher said. "I’m also glad that I play
with women now because I feel like I add more to the team."
Natcher, a redshirt freshman, transferred from UC Santa Barbara
in winter quarter of this year. She says that transferring was an
easy choice to make from the water polo standpoint.
"I knew (UCLA’s) program was going to be growing," Natcher said.
"I like the team aspect here. I’m so much happier. I could tell
from the first day that I was going to learn more at UCLA than I
learned my whole life in water polo."
Both Cady and Natcher are happy to be a part of UCLA’s rookie
team.
"Playing for a first-year team you don’t know what the coaches
expect and the coach doesn’t know what to expect from you," Cady
said. "So there’s a lot of leeway to go out there and have fun and
do exactly what you know how to do."
However, Natcher says that despite the good times that they
share as a team, the pressure of succeeding lurks.
"It’s stressful having a first-year team because people expect
so much," Natcher said. "Here at UCLA all the sports are number
one. We’re going to be there but this is our first year."
Cady also says that they have learned a lot during their first
year.
"We learned how to play as a team," Cady said. "We learned how
to depend on other people."
And other people have learned to depend on them for their
leadership.
"They lead by example," Baker said. "I think that they have the
key components for leadership. They practice hard every day and
stay positive. I think that they are doing a great job. They’re
both freshmen and by their junior year they will be
unstoppable."