Growing up in Southern California, Cheyenne Savoie was constantly surrounded by elite water polo talent. But even as a young girl, her own skills shone through when she jumped in a pool.
“She would go in and post up against the guys in the middle of the pool, get the ball and just score,” Cheyenne’s sister, Chantelle, recalled about her playing youth co-ed water polo. “When your sister is killing it against the boys in the pool, it stands out.”
Cheyenne — who is one of the captains of the Oregon club water polo team — picked up the sport in the fourth grade. Her ball handling skills were a distinct cut above those of her peers, so her parents enrolled her at the Los Angeles Water Polo Club when she started high school. In her junior year, her 18 and under team won the National Junior Olympics tournament in front of several Olympic and college coaches.
From there, Cheyenne tried out for the Olympic Development Program — a strenuous process that involved a pair of seven hour days in the pool every weekend over the course of three months. Despite coming up short of making the Team USA Junior Olympic team, she made the Cadet team and got to practice and travel with Team USA.
Cheyenne broke numerous Ventura County and Newbury Park High School records in the pool and several top Division I college programs offered her full-ride scholarships. But by the end of her high school career, the grind of year-round water polo had taken its toll.
“I went on recruiting trips and I just saw what it was going to be like,” Cheyenne said. “With any DI sport, it becomes your life and I wanted to have a normal college experience without having to play water polo every second of the day. I was just tired out.”
Instead, Cheyenne headed north for Eugene. The University of Oregon doesn’t have a varsity water polo team, but the Oregon club team provided her with the perfect outlet to continue to feed her passion for the sport. The demands aren’t as high as they would be at a Division I program, but the team practices five days a week and travels to tournaments.
“It’s like having the best of both worlds,” Cheyenne said of her experience at Oregon. “I get to have this team that I love and play the sport I love, but I also get to experience the college life.”
As a freshman, she emerged as a top player on the club and had the opportunity to play alongside Chantelle, who was a senior at the time. A year later, Cheyenne thrived in her role as one of the team’s captains.
“She’s not only great at motivating herself but motivating people around her so everyone can accomplish the goal,” club president Emily England said. “Her presence just commands respect and you want to hear what she has to say.”
For Cheyenne, being a part of the team has allowed her to grow outside the pool into what her father, Lanny, describes as a “very mature and well-rounded person.”
“She would have done great playing DI,” Lanny said. “But she’s enjoying life and getting good grades. She’s doing really good and we’re really proud of her.”
Follow Chris Mosch on Twitter @chris_mosch