Rio Americano Girls Water Polo Seeks Decade of Dominance

The girls water polo team is hoping to make it a decade of excellence in Division II of the Sac-Joaquin Section with the goal of a 10th consecutive title this fall.

"We hope to have the same end as the past nine years, even though we're a little light on depth," said head coach Chris Nissen.

The title defense begins Wednesday at home against .

"There's a lot of pressure," said junior attacker Emily Perry.

It's a younger team, having lost some key players to graduation last year. One starter is freshman utility Maigrie McDougal.

"(Maigrie) is proving herself in the pool," said junior goalie Avery Dotterer.

Many of the Rio players know each other well from the American River, Davis and Sacramento club teams. Part of the Raiders' pre-season workouts have included yoga.

"We've been doing a lot of swimming and conditioning," said junior attacker Emmy Savidge, who along with sophomore utility Celeste Brown is involved with the US women's water polo Olympic development program. "I feel like we've all improved."

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