For the past two years, Kinsley Gonzalez has been playing water polo, but she has been part of the swim team for three. “I joined because of my wonderful coach, Haley Barker. She encouraged me during our swim season to play water polo and explained that it’s different than swim, a lot more interactive and aggressive,” said Gonzalez. “I’m glad it’s something I went through with!”

Gonzalez played goalie her first year on the team. “I loved it!” she said. “Even though I took throws straight to my head, it was definitely my favorite place to play. Being able to watch as well as be included in almost every play was a good learning experience for me my first year. I was able to learn the game very quickly and work with passing the ball across the pool to my teammates.”

This year she is team captain and has played a variety of positions.

While her coach was instrumental to her joining the team, water polo wasn’t really foreign to her. “I was introduced to the sport at a really young age. I remember watching my brother play in high school,” she said.

Gonzalez actually has two brothers as well as three sisters, all of whom are over 21. “I’m the only one of my sibling left in high school and it’s weird,” she said. “Watching your siblings grow up and accomplish things and realizing you’re the last one to do so is a very strange feeling, however it gives you a bunch of things to look at and to consider doing after high school.”

In relationship to sports, she has had quite a comeback after the onset of the pandemic. “Our sophomore swim season got cut a few weeks early because it was the start of quarantine. However, we were still able to play our ‘20-‘21 season, both polo and swim.” Those seasons were shortened and squeezed into the spring of 2021, but it kept the swimmers on their toes and in the water. “We had to alter a few things due to the CDC mandates, but we made it work and had a small but bonded team,” she said.

Her senior year has already been very busy. Not only has she played water polo, but she has also been part of Armijo’s Colorguard team and plans to participate in swim and softball in the spring. “Since water polo is a unique and interactive sport, I hope to continue it in college, although I’m thinking to spend college more focused on my academics,” she said. What college she will attend is something that Gonzalez has not decided.

Even when she is not in the pool, Gonzalez still likes to be near the water. “I love going to the beach… I find it super relaxing and inviting,” she said. She also likes to be out with friends, exploring new places and seeing what the world has to offer, dancing, listening to music and going to parties. “I’m very social. I like to talk to people and make other laugh so I find myself doing that a lot. I also love trying new food so I would consider that a hobby.”

She definitely has a lot to do and she makes good choices and good memories. “My parents taught me right from wrong and I’ve used my own judgment to grow from that, realizing nobody and nothing is perfect, but you’ll find things that seem perfect to you,” she said.