Mahri Tiemann may be in her last year of high school, but she decided to try something new. Before the school year began, she joined the 2022 Water Polo team.

“I wanted to join a sport and my best friend, Lily Fenn, convinced me to be a part of the team,” she said. Tiemann is not new to athletic endeavors, though. She did gymnastics when she was little but had stopped in seventh grade.

“I don’t really know any professional water polo players, but I look up to some of the members on the team, like Lily, Milan and Audrey,” Tiemann said. These girls have been part of the team for a while and help her learn some new techniques during practice. It takes time and she recognized that she has some weaknesses to overcome.

Tiemann feels that she needs to work on improving her reflexes as the season progresses. “Since I’m playing as goalie, I need to have good reflexes so I need to work on getting towards the ball before it comes at me,” she said.

It’s refreshing to be in the water and Tiemann is passionate about the sport, but it demands a lot of endurance and activity. That makes it a great way to stay in shape. “It’s a lot of work but it’s a lot of fun.” she said. Fortunately, she’s already a good swimmer, and is a natural at throwing. She’s also very determined, and being tall helps a lot.

Some advice she would like to give to someone who is interested in joining water polo would be “Don’t be afraid to start it. It might seem intimidating to join a water sport, even if you don’t know how to swim, but they’ll teach you,” she said. “It’s a lot of fun so it’s worth it to join.”

In her spare time Tiemann likes to draw, and hang out with friends, as well as talk to them on the phone. She also finds herself doing so much homework.