February Baller of the Month

Congratulations, Annie P 

February 2019 

Baller of the Month 

Name: Annette (Annie) Poluse

Years playing w/CWPC: I joined in Spring of 2012, so almost 7 years

Hometown: Painesville, Ohio

Height: 5’4”

Best lifting stat ever: 130lb bench press hit in Spring 2017 (All the way down, bar touching chest, none of that cheating crap! Please see Bro Science YouTube videos for more information about lifting)

Favorite Tourney: Quarry!! Second favorite Chapel Hill

Favorite Position to play: Defense man/woman down between the posts

Other sports/hobbies you participate in: I’m a member of the West Park YMCA Olympic Lifting Club, and have been so for about 6 years. It’s a good inexpensive place to get good quality Olympic lifting coaching from a bunch of old conservative men who like to yell a lot. It is not a judge-free zone. I also used to swim quite a bit, and am looking to get back into it (any takers for swimming Thursdays before practices?) When the weather is nice, I like to play tennis. I like to read. In 2018 I hit my goal of 35 books! My favorite and probably most expensive hobby is travel. I’ve been to 28 countries outside of the US. My three favorites so far are Laos, Peru, and Italy. This year I will likely be adding 8 new countries which includes Luxemburg, Trinidad, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Rwanda, and Uganda 

Favorite CWPC memory: This is really tough… probably my first tournament to Chapel Hill, NC. This is the tournament where we were behind the large car pile up on the freeway for several hours due to fog. It was an interesting introduction to tournaments, sleeping arrangements, and partying CWPC style!

Favorite post  polo snack: Anything with avocado, or mac and cheese if I’m hung over...

Advice to new players: Stick with it and don’t get discouraged! You may never be super great, but you’ll improve a lot and it’s a fun sport worth playing whether you are an all-star or enthusiastic bench warmer!

What makes your buffalo chicken dip so good?: I shred the chicken in a food processor and use a slow cooker. This ensures optimal flavor distribution. It’s not a complicated recipe: about 2 cream cheese tubs per chicken breast, Frank’s red (original), and ranch dressing. Boil and shred the chicken, stir in ingredients in a slow cooker, typically needs to cook on low for 2 hours or it’ll be cold. (You can also add in cauliflower florets after cooking them in the microwave. You won’t notice the difference and it is better for your health)

How did you get into polo?: I first heard of water polo when I watched the 2008 Summer Olympics. I didn’t want to miss a single swim event and watched Phelps win all 8 medals! Between two of his events, they showed a clip from a water polo game. I thought “What is this water sport? Look at those cute hats! I want one!” After college, I started looking for activities to fill my after work hours time that would be social, keep me fit, and would work on a non-work-related skill. I tried masters swimming but it wasn’t very social, the coaches were just giving workouts instead of helping improve my stroke, and it was stupid expensive. One of my roommates played water polo for NDC the first year they had a team and told me to look up club teams. I googled “water polo in Cleveland” and a website with Kevin Z’s face showed up. I emailed Kevin, told him I didn’t know how to play but that I wouldn’t drown so he told me to come to a Sunday practice. I showed up and Kevin, Nico, and Preetha showed me a lot of basics before a scrimmage and the rest is history!

How many bad bunny jokes have you heard over the years? I didn’t keep track, but a lot! I think it’s safe to say that 80-90% of them came from Kevin Z.

In Loving Memory of the Dark Knight:

The one, the only, the Dark Knight! RIP

CWPC Newest Member, Sasha!

Annie's teammates think of her as spunky as her furry friends! "Annie hopped into CWPC as a brand new player years ago and her skills never stop multiplying. Although she has only recently grown to love the cage, she is tough and never quits, coincidentally just like the Energizer Bunny! "

Anything you'd like to say to the team?: Thanks for being helpful in teaching me how to play this fun sport! I enjoy our time both in the pool and out!

Favorite animal cap?: Torn between my nemo orange fish cap and bumble bee!

Also, here are some links so we can save our fellow swimmer friends the dolphins!

or These dolphins!

Thanks again, Annie, for your support, buffalo chicken dip and lots of great memories! 

Upcoming Practices

• Tuesday, 2/25, 8:30pm - 10:00pm at LHS
• Thursday, 2/27, 8:00pm - 10:00pm at CSU
• Sunday, 3/3, 9:30am - 11:30am at LHS

Oakland Day Tournament

Are you interested in playing in a 3 game, 1 day tournament at Oakland University (detroit ish area) on Sunday, March 31st? Let us know by the end of this week!