Leila Egusa '22 Recruiting Profile

Hello, my name is Leila Egusa and I am a 5’7” set player from Cypress, CA. I am a senior at Cypress High School (class of 2022) and have been a starter on the women’s varsity water polo team since my freshman year. This past season, I worked on my leadership skills in the pool with my coach’s direction in communicating with my teammates and controlling the ball.  I earned our Varsity MVP award as well as Empire League MVP for both the 2020 and 2021 seasons.  As a result of my performance during the 2020 season, I  hold the record of most goals scored in a single season at Cypress High School.  Also  I earned  the First Team All League designation for the Empire League at the end of my freshman season.

Last season, I was named as one of our varsity team captains.  With so much going on in the world the last 18 months  and not being able to play water polo as much as I would have during "normal" years, I do what I can to stay active and positive.  I have been focusing on what I can improve both within myself and on my high school team.   As for myself, I am working on continually developing into a well rounded player so I'm not pigeon-holed into one position without the ability to adapt.  I have played not only set, but point, wing and 2m defense.  I help my team by leading by example, encouraging them whenever I can as well as having "straight talk" with individuals when they ask me for it.  An example of this was when my coach didn't start one teammate and instead started another seemingly less experienced player.  She asked me why (she didn't understand the explanation our coach gave her) and I said that in practice she tends to give up and the other player follows through on various plays/drills.  That simple tip appeared to click with her and her attitude/effort during practice seemed to change.  As a result, our coach is subbing her in more often now.  

Aside from playing high school water polo, I have played club water polo since I was 10 and compete whenever possible since I was 11. I was selected as a member of the Southern Pacific Zone ODP cadet team in 2017-2018.  Unfortunately we have not had many tournaments or competitions in the last year + due to the pandemic and restrictions in California.  However, I played JOs with my club wherein JO quals was our first time playing together - we went into the SoPac zone tournament seeded 15th of 18 and ended up finishing 10th overall.  I also participated in an ODP zone training day in November 2020 (Southern Pacific Zone All Star group).

Ideally, I would like to play water polo competitively at a university with a great academic reputation that will eventually lead me to going to graduate school to become a doctor of physical therapy. Financial assistance is going to be very important in the college selection process as my mom is my sole support. I am interested in schools that are committed to and known for developing and graduating well rounded adults ready to enter the workplace or graduate school.