Sports
Santa Cruz 2-meter talent Violet Rubin commits to NCAA D-I UC Davis
SANTA CRUZ — Violet Rubin, a dominant 2-meter player for Santa Cruz High and Santa Cruz Water Polo Club, has verbally committed to NCAA Division I UC Davis, she announced on social media.
The Cardinals’ 5-foot-9 senior has shined both in the pool and classroom. She’s a two-time USA Water Polo Academic All-American. To receive the honor, athletes are not only required to excel athletically, but maintain a minimum grade-point average of 3.5.
“I’m super excited to play at a higher level,” said Rubin, an aspiring teacher who plans to major in human development.
Rubin, a two-time All-Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League first-team selection, took an unofficial visit to Davis and said the program checked several boxes. She said the Aggies have a “really supportive coaching staff that cares about the athlete and the student,” and noted that it’s a strong program with a really close and positive team culture.
“The campus is beautiful and all the student-athletes that I heard from are really happy there,” said Rubin, who turns 17 on Oct. 17.
The Aggies (13-15, 3-5), under head coach Kandace Waldthaler, took fifth place in the Big West Conference last spring. The team will join the Golden Coast Conference in 2026-27, when the majority of the Aggies’ sports programs move to the Mountain West Conference.
The GCC will also include San Jose State, Santa Clara, Fresno State, Pacific, San Diego State, Loyola Marymount, and Azusa Pacific.
Rubin has 147 goals, 38 assists and 99 steals to her name in her three-year varsity career, which includes 66 games.
She helped the Cardinals (14-9, 5-3) take third place in the SCCAL last season and reach the Central Coast Section Division II championship. She scored a team leading 72 goals and had 14 assists and 56 steals.
Rubin is excited for her final high school season for many reasons. One of the biggest is the opportunity to play with her younger sister, Naima, a freshman defender, for the first time,
“I really love water polo and have loved it since I started playing when I was 10 years old,” Rubin said. “I remember at the beginning of COVID-19 when all the pools were closed and we practiced at Capitola Beach. Water polo is such a fun and exciting game and playing it really gives me focus and made me grow as a person, on the pool deck and in the classroom. I’m so excited that I get to continue playing in college.”
Rubin has made an impression on many of her coaches.
Said Eric Byrd, a coach at SCWP Club who previously served as the Cardinals’ head coach: “From when Violet first started playing water polo, she showed a great work ethic. It didn’t matter if it was the first or 20th time doing a drill, or if the coach wasn’t watching her that time, she’d put her all into it. She’d go through stretches in her early career of having a low shooting percentage, but she kept on working with a relentless determination to become the dominant player she is today. She’s the kind of player you can build an entire offense around, and the opposing team has to build their defense around. She’s been a huge reason for the success of all the teams she’s been on. I’m extremely proud of her.”
Opponents have gotten a little too physical while attempting to defend Rubin. Last season with the Cardinals, Rubin had 59 ejections drawn.
Maxwell Dapkus, the Cardinals’ head coach the past two seasons, said his team graduated a half dozen players from last season’s team. He’s excited to have Rubin back to provide leadership and tutelage for the program’s less experienced players.
“I’m really excited for Violet and proud of her for setting a high bar for herself and then going out and achieving it,” Dapkus said. “As a coach, seeing these young ladies grow as players and people is the best part of my job. I think she still has goals left in high school water polo and has come into this season focused on accomplishing those. Violet is a talented player with a lot of experience and I’m most looking forward to seeing her continue to grow as a leader this year.”
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