'Probably at this point, because the sport for women is fairly young, there are only two you would put at the very top: my former coach (at Cal), Maureen O'Toole, and Coralie Simmons.' 'She's a legend of the game,' Hansel said. national teams that won silver medals at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 (where a controversial goal gave the Australians the gold) and the Pan-American games in 1999. It was like, 'Oh, my gosh, what is she gonna think of me?''įor those unfamiliar with Simmons, the most cursory Google search turned up a frighteningly strong list of accolades: two-time national player of the year at UCLA, leading scorer for the U.S. They were like legends of water polo,' Burchard said. 'The two players I knew best were Coralie Simmons and Maureen O'Toole. water polo groupie,' idolized the new coach. Senior Samantha Burchard, a self-described 'U.S. 'I was like, 'Oh, really?'' Hansel recalled. It was at her sister's wedding shower in the summer of 2006 that Hansel heard Simmons, then a UCLA assistant, might be interested in coaching in Northern California. They were acquainted through their sport, and shared at least one close friend. Simmons had been on Hansel's radar screen for some time.

While I hated to lose to the Bruins, I looked forward to playing against her.' 'She was certainly a very physical and aggressive player, but she was always a smart player and a very fair player. 'When you play against someone as talented as Coralie, you can't help but have admiration for what they're capable of doing,' Hansel said.

Hansel put her rivalry aside and talked Simmons into taking the job. And doing the most to sink Cal was Bruins star Coralie Simmons. Each time, they lost to Pac-10 rival UCLA. Hansel was a four-time All-American water polo player at Cal, and during her time in Berkeley the Bears played in the NCAA championship game three times. The surprise was that she targeted the woman most single-handedly responsible for thwarting her college career.

So she stepped up a mental process she had gradually begun already: hand-picking a successor. When Sonoma State women's water polo coach Alicia Hansel found out she was pregnant with her third child last year, she realized it was time to back away from the pool.

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