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ILLINOIS WATER POLO |
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Monday - May 10, 2004
Maggie Hatcher Gets Defensive For Evanston By Aaron Brown -
Maggie was a swimmer before high school, and never played water polo until she got to Evanston. "I started playing my freshman year," she said. "My brother Brett played in high school and my sister Molly started the girls team at Evanston. I had been a swimmer all my life so it was obvious that I would spend more time in the water."
Her brother has had a big impact on her performance, as Brett Hatcher is the head girls' water polo at Evanston High School. He has been a major reason why the age group program in the Evanston area has picked up, and he has gotten his team to the state tournament the last two seasons. "I really love playing for Brett. Not only is he my biggest fan, he's one of my best friends. Sometimes people think that I get special treatment because of our relationship, but he really is fair. I also get to play with my little sister, Grace, which is really special. This whole team is basically one big family to me."
Maggie started as a freshman, playing as a driver, but even she admitted that she was "basically learning as I went along". She played the same role for her team as a sophomore, a season which concluded with a sectional semifinal loss to eventual state runner-up Oak Park. After a summer playing with the Northern Illinois Polo Club, Maggie had taken the next step to improve as an all-around player, and the difference was clear in the pool. As a junior, she was the primary defender for a team went 15-2 and beat Loyola 8-5 to win the Glenbrook North sectional and advance to state in 2003.
Her performance this year might be even more astounding, as Evanston lost six seniors to graduation and faced a difficult schedule. Yet even after a few early losses, they finished the regular season with a 19-9 record, then won two straight games at sectionals to head to state with a 21-9 mark. In their sectional championship win over Loyola, the Ramblers scored a goal in the first quarter, but were held scoreless for the rest of the game. Evanston would go on to win 6-1, and Maggie's performance on the defensive end is something that may not show up in the box score, but definitely has a major impact on the outcome of a game.
Maggie was selected to the All-State First Team as a junior, and later earned status as an All-American. She will continue her water polo career at Cal-State Long Beach, and will likely major in English or Fashion.
In her free time, Maggie likes to listen to all kinds of music, especially "anything I can dance to - I love to dance". Her favorite all-time shows are Saved by the Bell and Full House, and more recently she watches Friends and Sex and the City.
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