Rob Thompson was named one of the American Water Polo Association’s 2017 Scholar Athlete Award winners last month.
Cherry Hill resident Rob Thompson, 15, will regularly travel 45 minutes north to Princeton University after a long day of school. Thompson does this so he can dive in the pool for Tiger Aquatics Water Polo and participate in what the National Federation of High Schools says is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country.
Thompson is entering his second year as a member of the Tiger Aquatics Water Polo Club, a year-round water polo team based out of Princeton University. Just one year after joining the club, Thompson, a sophomore at Cherry Hill High School East, was named one of the American Water Polo Association’s 2017 Scholar Athlete Award winners. Thompson received the award for his dedication to both water polo and his schoolwork.
Thompson’s love for water polo can be traced back to his childhood. His dad, Dan, played water polo in high school and later in college at Ohio State University.
Since the age of 7, Thompson has participated on a number of swim teams and continues to compete in swimming today. Last season as a freshman, Thompson was a member of the Public A state champion Cherry Hill East boys swimming team.
It wasn’t until a few years ago, however, that Thompson began playing water polo after his dad established a youth program at Old Orchard Swim Club.
Once Thompson began playing water polo, he was immediately hooked.
“I love the teamwork and being with my team,” Thompson said. “Unlike swimming, I have a team that I can be with. It’s not as individual.”
Thompson eventually decided to play on a more competitive level and joined Tiger Aquatics. The team competes in the Main Line League, with league games taking place in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in the spring. This past summer, the team also traveled to Irvine, Calif., to participate in the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics.
Thompson has a very full schedule between water polo, swimming and school, but he has learned to balance his responsibilities.
“I really have to pay attention in class and get my homework done, use my study hall and work hard at practice,” Thompson said. “Because I like what I’m doing, it makes it a lot more fun.”
With the bulk of water polo matches taking place in the spring, Thompson is able to compete with Cherry Hill East boys swimming without too many conflicts.
Thompson’s ability to maintain high grades in school while playing water polo and swimming help him get named an AWPA Scholar Athlete. Thompson applied for the award after hearing about it from a Tiger Aquatics teammate.
“At first, I didn’t really think I’d get it at all,” Thompson said. “I didn’t really see myself applying in the first place because I knew so many people would be doing it. I just kept my grades up and worked really hard in water polo.”
Thompson’s involvement in water polo goes beyond just playing the sport. Thompson has become an ambassador in some ways, helping his father as the assistant instructor for the Jersey Wahoos Swim Club’s youth water polo program. Thompson enjoys working with the younger kids and encouraging them to take up the sport.
“It’s really an exciting thing,” Thompson said. “A lot of new people want to try the sport, because it’s virtually non-existent in South Jersey.”
The only high schools that have water polo teams are based in Central and North Jersey. The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association does not sponsor a water polo state championship.
Thompson hopes this will change as time goes on. He said a lot of water polo skills cross over with competitive swimming, and he believes the sport can become more popular around the area as more kids are introduced to it.
“Swimming and water polo can benefit and complement each other,” he said. “You’re practically (swimming) the whole game. With water polo to swimming, the endurance you get from water polo goes hand-in-hand with each other.”
For more information on water polo, visit www.americanwaterpolo.org.
