Whenever Malibu High girls water polo player Gaia Hinds received the ball from a teammate and faced down an opposing goal this season, her first thought is to fire the ball toward the back of the net.
“I look to score,” said the senior. “If I can’t, I look for a teammate to pass it to, so they can score.”
That mentality and scoring a ton of points—she had games of six goals, eight goals and so on—for the Sharks led to Hinds being named the MVP of the Tri-Valley League in late February. It was the second consecutive season the utility player had received the honor from the six-team league’s coaches.
The 18 year old said being league MVP was cool, but not a title she actively sought.
“It’s a great honor to get an award like that,” Hinds said. “The success behind it is always putting in 110 percent effort.”
The player and Malibu coach Hayden Goldberg said Hinds being named MVP also showed the stellar team play the Sharks, co-champs of the Tri-Valley League, exhibited in the pool.
“There were a lot of girls that gave the ball to Gaia,” Goldberg said. “The girls really did phenomenal this year individually and as a team.”
And it showed.
Six other Sharks received some type of Tri-Valley League honor at the end of the season.
Seniors Sophie Spivack and Annie Armitage were named to the Tri-Valley League first team and Sasha Alvarez was named to the second team. Katie Gorak, Lauren Maischoss and Luna Salinas received honorable mention honors.
Armitage said a lot of talent was on Malibu’s roster this season.
“The girls put in a lot of work,” she said.
Hinds said that many of the Sharks played water polo together on youth teams and in middle school. She said that allowed the group to know how to play together, so their talent could shine in the pool.
“We clicked as a group,” Hinds said.
“We are all pretty close,” Armitage agreed. “We know how each other plays.”
The Sharks had a 12-9 record this season. The team’s last game was an 11-8 loss in the first round of the CIF playoffs to Etiwanda on Feb. 14. The group had its banquet on Sunday. There, Hinds and Spivack were named co-MVPs of the team, Armitage won the Shark Award and Alvarez won the Biggest Impact honor.
Goldberg, the league’s coach of the year two years ago, said he is very proud of the season the Sharks had.
“It is really a team sport—so as much praise I can give to the girls, it comes down to what their teammates did for them and how everyone was involved in the workout, did the workouts, performed in games together, won games together and lost games together,” he said.
Spivack said the strong bond the members of the Sharks formed throughout the season was paramount to the group’s success.
“Our friendships grew bigger than previous seasons,” the four-year varsity water polo player. “We spent time together as a team and did a lot of bonding at tournaments. We are all still close friends.”
The Sharks’ season included wins over Louisville, Atascadero, Thousand Oaks, Beverly Hills, Palisades, La Sierra, Glendale and other schools.
Hinds said the team’s biggest win was defeating defending Tri-Valley League champion Foothill Tech.
“That was really awesome,” she said.
Foothill Tech beat Malibu in the next contest the two teams played, but the Sharks win helped them become co-champions of the Tri-Valley League.
Goldberg said that this season’s team has a special place in his heart. The coach said Hinds, Spivack and Armitage—now 12th graders—were his first group of freshmen on the varsity team. He said he really wanted the three and Gabby Cano and Zara Schoester, also seniors, to win a CIF title.
“These are the girls that helped me really start the program,” Goldberg said.
Armitage, who is preparing for swim season, called the team a family, and said she missed water polo season already.
Spivack said, “This was the most fun I ever had on a team.”