The GoCardless Swim England Water Polo National Age Group Championships 2025 (U17/U19) take place at the Alan Higgs Sports Centre in Coventry this weekend.

In the build up to the competition, we’re taking a closer look at each of the sides that are looking to become national champions in the Midlands on Sunday.

Here, in the final of our four previews we take a look at the U19 open teams that have qualified for finals weekend.

Each of the previews for the event will be posted on the Swim England website within the water polo hub, whilst those who haven’t had the chance to get their tickets in advance can purchase them on venue, subject to availability.

Cheltenham

Defending champions Cheltenham return to finals weekend after securing their first gold in the event 12 months ago.

They took gold in a dominant display in Gloucester last year, defeating Worthing and City of Sheffield in style to take the gold.

They return with a young squad this time around with a team that is primed to impress both this weekend and in National Age Group Championships going forward.

A repeat of last year’s final with Sheffield kicks off their campaign on Saturday and Head Coach Katy Ross is looking forward to another exciting competition.

She said: “Cheltenham are delighted to have qualified again for the National Age Group Championship Finals weekend.

“It’s always a highlight in our junior calendar and our U19s are very much looking forward to defending their title!

“Unlike last year, which saw us field a core of 2006 and 2007 born girls, this year’s squad is comprised of some very promising and confident younger players, many of whom have several years left in this competition.

“In fact, five are eligible for the U15 competition at the end of this year! It’s a hugely exciting time to be involved in women’s water polo, with so many more opportunities opening up for our female players.

“Two of our top players in this age group won’t make this weekend’s Finals, because they will be representing the CSWPC Senior Women at the Nordic League Finals in Malta, alongside City of Manchester. We’re really looking forward to seeing everyone in Coventry on Saturday at what promises to be, as always, a brilliant weekend for junior British water polo.”

Squad: Alexandra Haslam (GK), Georgia Haslam (C), Megan Ross, Luisa Borgia, Ella Webster, Imogen Blassberg, Pippa Forrest, Jess Day, Alice Ross, Lucy Paterson, Sophia Kania, Edith Clarke. Head Coach: Katy Ross. Assistant Coach: Stu McKie. Team Manager: Laura Kania.

City of Sheffield

After back-to-back podium finishes at the Championships, City of Sheffield’s U19s women’s side head to Coventry looking to go one better.

In 2024, they overcame the defending champions in Manchester to reach the final and this time round they’ll be looking to take on Cheltenham in their opening match.

An unbeaten run in qualifying puts them in a strong position to impress this weekend and Head Coach Gabby Williams says her side are ready to leave everything in the pool as they trek to the Midlands.

“Sheffield are hungry for the win,” she said.  “We have a strong team and are ready to give it our all.

“Last year we went in as the underdogs against Manchester where we produced a thrilling semi-final, beating the reigning champions to silver.

“This year we are ready to do the same again, against last year’s champions, Cheltenham.

“It is a young squad, who have consistently won bronze at this level and they have been training relentlessly to do one better this year. The majority of this squad went to the EU Nations in November, which has given them all an extra drive and passion to improve their game.

“I’m incredibly proud of their performance at the qualifiers. To top the table, with those scorelines was a great effort, with every player contributing to the result.

“We are ready to fight to the final whistle and will be leaving everything we have in the pool. We do that and we leave with our heads held high no matter the result. A big thank you to our finals sponsor SPR Malta.”

Squad: Laura Skelton (C), Connie Swainson (VC), Severn Annakin, Lauren Bellett, Alice Berrill, Georgie Coles, Hannah Croker, Rowena Kanan, Izzi Olcer , Ruby Taylor, Caitlin Urquhart, Anna Woodhall. Head Coach: Gabby Williams. Assistant Coach: Kevin Swainson. Team Manager: Rachel Skelton

City of Liverpool

City of Liverpool were one of the standout teams inside their home pool in the Qualification Round.

The Merseyside outfit were only third in the preliminaries but went on to top Group B ahead of defending champions Cheltenham.

A 9-5 win over the Gloucestershire based team as well as knocking off Worthing and West London Penguin sent a statement that they’re ready to go for gold this weekend.

Captain Isabelle Ibbs returns to the competition after scoring seven as the club narrowly missed out on an U17 medal two years ago and she’s excited to be back at finals weekend this time around.

She said: “We’re really excited to be back at the National Age Group Championship finals weekend after just missing out last year!

“Playing in the British Water Polo League this season has been such a valuable experience for all of us and has definitely helped us prepare for the tough matches ahead.”

Squad: Jenna Binks, Lucy Davis, Abbie Evans, Jess Freeman, Abigail Harrison, Isabella Ibbs (C), Francesca Lucas, Tillie McGeehan, Fleur Morris, Annie Rowland, Sianna Tamlin, Isobella Taylor, Ataliah Taylor-Potts, Hannah Tunbridge, Lily Watson. Head Coach: Alice Byrne. Assistant Coach: Laura Hesketh. Team Manager: Sian Freeman.

City of Bristol

Head Coach Nick Hume leads his Bristol side to Coventry as the club hunts for his first National Age Group title in this event.

He leads a group that’s looking forward to a ‘great test’ after they topped the table in the Preliminary Round.

Four wins from four booked their spot in the qualification stage where there only blip came against a strong Sheffield team that are regular medalists in the competition.

Hume can rely on some of his players from Great Britain’s U18s squad in Georgia Haines, India Knights-Hume and captain Harriet Bates to help lead his side to victory on Saturday when they face Liverpool at the Alan Higgs Centre.

Speaking ahead of the event Hume said that his side have been training hard in the lead up to the event. He said: “We’re really looking forward to the semi-final. It’s going to be a great test.

“The girls have been training relentlessly, going up against our senior ladies to push themselves further. If we perform at our best, we know we’re a tough team to beat.

“We’re ready to compete and will give everything – but ultimately, may the best team win.”

Squad: Esme Griffiths, Heidi Kilb, Abbie Johnson, Josephine Lamont Tuckett, Harriet Bates (C), Eliza Shearn, Dalma Sinkovicz, India Knights-Hume, Georgia Haines, Darcey Tomlinson, Olivia Llewelyn-Davies, Manon Lyhtgoe, Fifi Pullen. Head Coach: Nick Hume. Assistant Coach: Louise Betts. Team Manager: Deby Herring.

You can keep up with all the action from the weekend by following our live scoreboard, whilst the Swim England website and social media channels will be providing regular updates on everything happening in Coventry.

Swim England’s official event’s photographer, Will Johnston Photography, will also be on hand throughout the weekend and the full gallery will be available here.

Three athletes from American River College’s Fall 2024 volleyball season, Morgan Castaneda, Sofia MacPherson and Kyla Powell have committed to four-year institutions this semester. All three athletes are moving towards a new chapter in their academic and athletic journey 

The schools that the ARC athletes committed to are San Jose State University, Cal State Monterey Bay and Alcorn State University respectively.  

For community college athletes who want to continue their journey at a four-year institution, going through the process of committing to a university can be a trudge in the mud. Athletes first need to have trained for years and performed at a stage with a high standard. Then go through a seemingly endless stream of outgoing emails.

“You email a ton of schools and you don’t hear back from a lot, and sometimes you can take that personally, but it’s important not to take that to heart,” said MacPherson, sharing her experience as an athlete reaching out to institutions over the past year. 

And this process can take time.

“I started back in, like, May (2024), so I think you just have to stay focused and…not bother, but keep emailing the schools over and over again, and just staying persistent,” MacPherson said.

Despite the struggles that student athletes face contacting schools, an ARC volleyball athlete can be at ease knowing that the competition is something that they will not need to worry about. 

The ARC volleyball program over the last decade has been one of the best in the state with winning the past Big 8 Championship as well as making six straight appearances at the California Community College Athletics Association State Women’s Volleyball Championship.

“I think we do a good job of development. I think in order to have that be a positive experience with transfering to the next level,” said Carson Lowden, ARC Volleyball Head Coach. “we’re all about developing the players who are in our program to be the best volleyball players that they can be, to be the next version of themselves as people, so they’re prepared to go on and thrive at the next level.”

The great performances from the team in the last 3C2A was also a great factor in the recruitment process, showcasing their abilities at a big stage. The team went deep into the tournament and was defeated by subsequent State Champions Feather River College in the semi-finals. 

In the last week of the regular season Powell was named the California Community College Women’s Volleyball Association State Player of the Week for week 13 thanks to a great performance against Modesto junior College where she recorded 18 of her 31 attempted kills.

Castaneda also had a stand out performance in their quarter-final win against LA Mission College, with 21 kills, 10 digs and three blocks.

In an interview with The Current, Lowden gave a send off message to those who have committed to four-years.

“Continue to play to play and remember the process. The process is the most important part of the “thing,”  Lowden said. “Your greatest win and your gnarliest loss are both just one moment in time. And yet you still get to show up every single day and be in the process. So it’s always that process.”

Although the Indoor season is over, ARC also has a Beach Volleyball season that sees many of the same players from indoor.  They currently have an 18-5 record and have 5 pairs advancing into the NorCal Pairs Championships and will play Friday, May 2 at Cosumnes.

2025 Big West Women’s Water Polo Awards 

The Big West proudly boasts its women’s water polo major award winners and all-conference selections one week ahead of the 2025 NCAA Women’s Water Polo Championship. Our awards and teams were voted on by the conference’s eight head coaches. 

Bernadette Doyle of Hawai’i wears The Big West Player of the Year distinction after recording 53 goals, 38 assists (91 points), 43 drawn exclusions, 13 field blocks, and a conference best 51 steals. In league play, Doyle dished out a UH high in points with 37 alongside 19 tallies and a team-best 19 assists. The Aukland, New Zealand native’s 2.1 steals per game lead the league while also ranking No. 3 in assists per game at 1.6. This is the third straight season a member of the Rainbow Wahine has been recognized as the Player of the Year and seventh recipient in program history.  

Éma Vernoux has earned the Big West Freshman of the Year award following an impressive season that saw the first-year player finish with the third-most tallies in the league with 75. As the top overall goal scorer for UH, Vernoux found the back of the net six times in against Arizona State and posted a career-best eight points (4 goals, 4 assists) in a non-conference clash against UC Irvine. The Marseille, France native is the fourth UH player in the last five years (sixth overall) to find themselves as the Freshman of the Year. 

James Robinson claimed Big West Coach of the Year during the first year at the helm of Hawai’i. After serving as associate head coach for two seasons, Robinson aided the Rainbow Wahine to a 21-4 season including an unblemished 7-0 mark in Big West battles. The Rainbow Wahine won The Big West’s regular season and Championship in back-to-back seasons. Overall, UH downed 18 nationally ranked opponents this year including a staple 8-5 victory versus UCLA this season which helped the team remain No. 3 in the nation for seven straight weeks sparking an eight-game win streak. UH swept the major award category (Player and Freshman of the Year) and had student-athletes win Big West Player of the Week six times under Robinson’s watch in 2025.  

Joining fellow UH teammates in the first team list is 2025 Big West Tournament MVP Daisy Logtens. The netminder managed to finish atop the conference in goals-against average at an astounding 9.02 mark alongside 59 total saves, which qualify as third most in The Big West. During the Championship Final against LBSU, Logtens fell just one stop away of the sophomore’s career high with 14 saves. Overall, the goalkeeper turned away 25 shots on the team’s journey to the national tournament. 

A duo of Long Beach State attackers also earned first team status in Martina Cardona and Elisa Portillo. The pairing of Cardona (70) and Portillo (67) place fourth and fifth in The Big West with the most goals scored, respectively. Cardona (103) and Portillo (109) were two of five players to put together over 100 points during the 2025 campaign. This is the first nod on the All-Big West first team for both student athletes. LBSU capped off the season as the runner’s-up after beating CSUN 22-8 in the quarterfinals and edging UC Irvine 12-11 for a spot in the Championship Final.  

Another duo dots the first team list, this time representing UC San Diego with Caroline Christl and Kendall Thomas. Christl led the Tritons with 92 goals on the year which also accounted as second best in the league standings while Thomas saw 58 shots go through the net. Both representatives were rewarded Big West Player of the Week with Chistil claiming the award twice within a month’s span (Feb. 12 & March 5) and Thomas taking home the honor during the final week of the regular season on April 23. This is the first time Thomas has been named All-Big West while Christl collected first team honors in 2023 and earned a second team nod last season.  

Last season’s Freshman of the Year, Lauren Hett was also tapped to the first team. Hett scored a UC Irvine high 20 times in conference play of the sophomore’s 67 scores this season.   

The second team consists of UC Irvine’s Kennedy East and Brooke Hourigan, UC Santa Barbara’s Annie Kuester, Bridget Miller of UC Davis, Long Beach State’s Chelsea Oliver, CSUN’s Dorottya Telek and Jordan Wedderburn of Hawai’i.  

Telek touts a new Big West record in single season goals after netting a career-best six tallies in CSUN’s regular season finale en route to shattering the record with 104 goals. Telek tied the milestone in 2023 with 101 tallies after Monika Eggens of UH recorded the mark back in 2013. The center has scored 376 times in the senior’s career, qualiyfing as the most ever by a Big West student athlete. 

Wedderburn totaled the second most goals on UH this season with 65 tallies. The Joahnnesburg, South Africa native notched a career-high seven scores in a non-conference contest versus UCI. Wedderburn also racked up Player of the Week three times this season, tying the UH program record. 

East and Hourigan earned way as second team selections after each registering 41 goals apiece for UCI this season. The Anteaters compiled a 5-2 record in conference play this season and earned a hard-fought victory in the quarterfinal round of the 2025 Big West Women’s Water Polo Championship, 12-11 where the duo combined for four tallies.  

Kuester collected 60 scores to lead UCSB this season and notched 19 in league play. The senior found the back of the net three or more times in 10 games this season, highlighted by a six-goal standout performance in the Gauchos season opener.  

Miller led UCD in goals after putting 47 through the net in 2025. The center recorded four goals in three games this season, the amongst all Aggies.   

During Big West play, Oliver led the league in saves (81), goals-against average (7.22) and save percentage (.609). Oliver made double-digit stops four times in Big West battles reaching a career high 14 saves twice.  

Imani Clemons of UC Santa Barbara, Daniela Quinzada Gonzalez of Long Beach State, Sadie Henry of UC Davis, Destiny Hernandez of Cal State Fullerton, Kelly Hungerford, Chelsea Johnson, and Gianna Nocetti of UC Davis, Madi O’Hara of UC Irvine, Jamie Oberman of Long Beach State, Courtney Okumura of UC San Diego, Anna Pal of CSUN, Roni Perlman of Hawai’i, Amanda Price of Long Beach State, and Nioka Thomas of UC Irvine all received honorable mention. 

The All-Freshman team features LBSU’s Rita Gurri Capel, Gabrielle Doyle of UH, LBSU’s Daniela Quinzada Gonzalez, UCI’s Pippa Heaver, UCSB’s Bella Mady, UCSD’s Holly Roberts, and Éma Vernoux of UH.  

Hawai’i received the conference’s automatic qualifier into the NCAA Championship by winning The Big West Championship for the sixth time in program history after stifling second-seeded LBSU by a score of 8-6 in the Championship Final. This is the first time UH has punched consecutive tickets to the NCAA Championship since 2005-06.   

The Rainbow Wahine earned the No. 4 seed and will compete in a rematch of last year’s NCAA Championship Semifinal against California (19-5) in this year’s quarterfinals of the national tournament on Friday, May 9 at 2 p.m. PT/11 a.m. HT. The 2025 NCAA Women’s Water Polo Championship is hosted on the campus of IUPUI at the IU Natatorium, May 9-11. 

2025 All-Big West First Team
Student-Athlete	Year	Position	Institution	Hometown
Martina Cardona	Sr.	ATK	Long Beach State	Barcelona, Spain
Caroline Christl	R-Sr.	UTL	UC San Diego	San Clemente, Calif.
Bernadette Doyle	Sr.	ATK	Hawai’i	Auckland, New Zealand
Lauren Hett	So.	ATK	UC Irvine	Orinda, Calif.
Daisy Logtens	So.	GK	Hawai’i	Uden, Netherlands
Elisa Portillo	Jr.	ATK	Long Beach State	Madrid, Spain
Kendall Thomas	Sr.	CEN	UC San Diego	Merced, Calif.
Éma Vernoux	Fr.	ATK	Hawai’i	Marsielle, France
2025 All-Big West Second Team
Student-Athlete	Year	Position	Institution	Hometown
Kennedy East	Sr.	ATK	UC Irvine	Redondo Beach, Calif.
Brooke Hourigan	Gr.	ATK	UC Irvine	Newport Beach, Calif.
Annie Kuester	Sr.	UTL	UC Santa Barbara	Danville, Calif.
Bridget Miller	So.	UTL	UC Davis	Ladera Ranch, Calif.
Chelsea Oliver	Jr.	GK	Long Beach State	Auckland, New Zealand
Dorottya Telek	Sr.	CEN	CSUN	Budapest, Hungary
Jordan Wedderburn	Sr.	UTL	Hawai’i	Johannesburg, South Africa
Honorable Mention: Imani Clemons (UC Santa Barbara, Sr., CEN), Daniela Quinzada Gonzalez (Long Beach State, UTL), Sadie Henry (UC Davis, So., UTL), Destiny Hernandez (Cal State Fullerton, Sr., UTL), Kelly Hungerford (UC Davis, Sr., ATK), Chelsea Johnson (UC Davis, So., CEN), Gianna Nocetti (UC Davis, R-Jr., ATK), Madi O’Hara (UC Irvine, R-Jr., UTL), Jamie Oberman (Long Beach State, Sr., DEF), Courtney Okumura (UC San Diego, Sr., Los Altos, Calif.), Anna Pal (CSUN, Sr., DEF), Roni Perlman (Hawai’I, Jr., ATK), Amanda Price (Long Beach State, Gr., UTL), Nioka Thomas (UC Irvine, Sr., CEN)
All-Freshman Team: Rita Gurri Capel (Long Beach State, DEF), Gabrielle Doyle (Hawai’i, ATK), Daniela Quinzada Gonzalez (Long Beach State, UTL), Pippa Heaver (UC Irvine, ATK), Bella Mady (UC Santa Barbara, UTL), Holly Roberts (UC San Diego, UTL), Éma Vernoux (Hawai’i, ATK)

• Baylor transfer Allie Andrew, a 6-foot-3 middle blocker, announced she will play for Wisconsin.
• She averaged 1.61 kills and .98 blocks per set last season while hitting .396.
• Andrew has one year of eligibility remaining.

MADISON – The block of the Wisconsin volleyball team received a major boost on Friday, May 2.

GULF SHORES, Ala. – In a very tight match as expected between (9) Long Beach State and (8) Florida State, Natalie Glenn and Skyler Germann picked up a win for the Beach at the NCAA Championships, but the Seminoles ultimately defeated the Beach 3-1.

Long Beach State (27-12) dropped the fourth court to Florida State (26-12) as the Seminoles grabbed the first point of the dual. Natalie Glenn and Skyler Germann played two dominant sets over their opponents. The duo finished their game with Glenn hammering one to tie the dual 1-1. A close second set for Julia Westby and Haley Carrington went the way of the Seminoles to make it a 2-1 lead. Florida State clinched the dual with a straight set win at the fifth flight.

The Beach finished the season as Big West Champions for the second time in program history. They hold a 27-12 record and swept the top awards for the Big West, as Malia Gementera and Taylor Hagenah were the Big West Pair of the Year, Demi Wagdy was the Big West Freshman of the Year and Mike Campbell was selected as the Big West Coach of the Year for the third time in his career.

#8 Florida State 3, #9 Long Beach State 1

1. Alexis Durish and Audrey Koenig (FSU) vs. Malia Gementera and Taylor Hagenah (LBSU) match was unfinished 18-21, 21-19, 4-2

2. Gella Andrew and Maddie Trusty (FSU) def. Julia Westby and Haley Carrington (LBSU) 21-18, 22-20

3. Skyler Germann and Natalie Glenn (LBSU) def. Bailey Higgins and Carra Sassack (FSU) 21-12, 21-15

4. Makenna Wolfe and Myriah Massey (FSU) def. Demi Wagdy and Megan Widener (LBSU) 21-14, 22-20

5. Kenzie Hultquist and Jordan Boulware (FSU) def. Tineke Hinton and Mahala Esser (LBSU) 23-21, 21-19

Order of finish: 4, 3, 2, 5*