Three members of the first-ever Malibu High water polo team to take to the water were honored last Saturday at the high school’s pool.
Former Sharks Brad Schmidt, Keola Jarrett and Josh Watts, Malibu High graduates from 20 years ago, were inducted into the water polo team’s inaugural hall of fame class during halftime of the Malibu Water Polo 25th Anniversary Alumni Game and Hall of Fame event.
Head boys’ water polo coach Mike Mulligan said the trio, who were part of the first freshman class of Malibu High, helped set the water polo program’s tradition of working hard and winning.
“All three of them are tremendous leaders,” Mulligan said of the 1996 high school graduates. “Brad was an aggressive goalie who challenged everybody. He holds the record for most blocks in a career. Keola was a defensive specialist, who just played with tenacity and never gave up. Josh was our offensive leader, who set all of our offensive records and still holds the record for most goals in a single game.”
The head Shark said the three were all team MVPs at some point during their four-year Malibu careers. They and their classmates had four winning seasons, two undefeated seasons in conference play and went to the CIF playoffs twice.
“Those three set the bar really high for teams that followed,” Mulligan said.
Schmidt said it’s good to know the tradition he and his classmates began is still alive.
“These guys winning titles is awesome,” he said adding that being honored as one of the top Sharks ever is a surprising honor he hopes he can live up to.
Jarrett said when he was a teenager he would have never imagined being in a water polo hall of fame.
“When we started the team, we really had no idea what water polo was,” he said. “It feels good. It’s an honor because we had a lot of support behind us.”
Watts said being with his old teammates brought back fond memories.
“Being with all these guys again is a trip,” he said. “Water polo was a big part of my life back then.”
The three carry lasting memories of Malibu. There was the time Schmidt painted a bullseye on his chest with the phrase, “Shoot Here” written underneath the target, before a playoff game. Watts scored 10 goals in a close victory over Oxnard. Jarrett once painted himself half black and half white (good side/bad side) for a school pep rally.
The hall of fame inductions came on the day the water polo team and supporters recognized the water polo program’s 25-year anniversary. Dozens of Malibu water polo fans, family members, and former players watched the current boys’ varsity team square-off against alumni from the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s.
The varsity team took a 2-0 lead in the contest, but the alumni won the game 18-13.
Mulligan, a Malibu High teacher, started the Sharks team as a club program in 1990. In 1992, the team was officially affiliated with the high school and was composed of only freshmen who played junior varsity schedule. They finished the season with an 8-7 record.
Mulligan said most of the initial team’s nine members of the school’s water polo team wanted to play football. The lone boys’ water polo coach in Malibu High’s history said the then-high school freshmen took some time to get acclimated to the sport of water polo, including the attire.
“The first day of practice, the team showed up in board shorts and surfing trunks,” Mulligan said with a laugh. “It took me weeks and weeks to get them into Speedos.”
Malibu fielded a varsity team and finished in third place in the Frontier League in 1993. Schmidt, Jarrett and Watts led the team to undefeated Frontier League records and CIF berths during the next two seasons.
The Sharks have been winners in the pool ever since.
Mulligan said when he started the high school program, he didn’t envision the success Malibu would have.
“I always wanted to be competitive, but being an ocean community, a water community, these kids are really comfortable in the water and Malibu breeds hard-working kids in athletics,” he said.
Watts said all the success Malibu has had in water polo is due to Mulligan.
“It isn’t just his coaching,” Watts said. “He supported us and gave us something to do. He gave us a purpose in high school.”
Mulligan said 25 years of Malibu High water polo featured players putting in hard work, having fun and setting a winning tradition. The coach believed the anniversary event was an eye-opener for current Sharks.
“Seeing these guys get inducted and hearing the whole story of Malibu water polo is amazing for them,” he said.
As of press time, the Sharks have an 8-4 record. Mulligan said he is having an awesome time coaching this season’s team.
“This is a real positive, coachable group and right now they are improving every game they play,” he said.