Zachary Grech
Calendar Editor
Brianna Zapata, a senior psychology major and defender for the women’s water polo team, won First Team All-Conference for the Leopards for her stellar performance during her 2025 senior season.
The standout player recorded 42 goals – ranked second on her team – 27 steals, 29 assists and nine blocks – ranking fifth in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. What was impressive about Zapata’s standout year was not just the eye-opening stats she tallied on paper, but the fact that she came back from a torn rotator cuff, which can be career-ending for many, that caused her to miss the entire 2024 season.
Interim head coach Robert Echeverria praised Zapata’s work ethic, mindset and character to come back from such a difficult injury and have the determination to have a standout year.
“What impressed me was the fact that she goes from being out of the water for an entire year, to playing every minute for us this year,” Echeverria said.
Zapata spent her year away from playing as an assistant coach at St. Lucy’s High School, working under Echeverria. She said taking a coaching role for a year and learning to see water polo through a whole new lens helped her through the recovery process.
“I think just the coaching that I had done last year helped fully open my eyes to the game and seeing it in a different light,” Zapata said.
She even got to coach Echeverria’s daughter and help mentor her to progress in water polo. Through this shared experience, Echeverria said he has seen Zapata grow not just athletically but also in life, becoming a well-rounded individual who continues to find ways to impact other individuals in the community and even the younger generation.
This life-changing experience opened Zapata’s eyes to returning to the game she loved so much, not just as an ordinary player but as a respected leader on the team, one that her teammates and her coaches can fully rely on without any sort of hesitation in their minds.
Zapata led her team by example through the way she played the game of water polo with high intensity and drive. Even though she wasn’t as vocal as she said she wanted to be, she managed to inspire teammates in ways that she could have never imagined.
As two of her closest friends, senior goalie Kelly Jackson and junior attacker Brooklyn Young, both shared their personal experiences playing with Zapata in the water.
Jackson said playing with Zapata was one of the best experiences of her life, which started back when they played together in club water polo and on the same high school team at Alta Loma High School, at age 14.
“Growing up as a player with Bri, she always pushed me personally to just prove myself in the pool, and to put it all out there and leave it all in the water,” Jackson said.
Jackson said she looked up to Zapata because of the raw talent that she displayed in the water, which helped motivate her to live up to Zapata’s standards, which was exciting for Jackson.
“I was excited that we got to play together for another season because it just motivated me to meet Bri’s standards, because she holds herself to such a high regard,” Jackson said.
Jackson also said she looked up to Zapata because she truly shaped her water polo career. As Zapata taught her, hard work pays off.
“If anything, Bri taught me that hard work does get you places, it does get you far in life,” Jackson said.
For Young, she said playing with Zapata has always been such a rewarding and inspiring experience. Both players started playing on the same club team together at the ages of 11 and 12.
“I have always known Bri as that rock star in the water; whether she meant to do that or not, she has always been that very strong player,” Young said.“She just makes a lot of the right decisions in the water, and she never panicked; she would always be three steps ahead of everyone else.”
Young said she learned to have a mindset similar to Zapata’s, which was to never overthink things in the water, and always trust yourself. This became the next play mentality.
“So, trying to have this similar mindset, like having patience and then also having fun at the same time while I am in the water,” Young said.
Young also mentioned Zapata’s overall legacy at La Verne and the way she carried herself through her recovery process to return to her team.
“I would say strength, dedication, and perseverance because not many people go through injury like hers, especially like a shoulder injury in water polo is like a Tommy John injury for baseball,” Young said.
Her teammates and coach agree that the legacy that Brianna Zapata shows is more than just the All-SCIAC selection, but the daily impact she made at the University of La Verne, and most importantly to herself.
“I think she’s a great role model for these ladies playing the sport to look up to, because she is a great example of the true definition of a hard-working individual,” Echeverria said. “Like you don’t necessarily have to be the tallest, the fastest, but you can be one of the hardest workers in the water, and still be successful.”
Zachary Grech can be reached at zachary.grech@laverne.edu.
Zachary Grech is a senior communications major with a concentration in public relations, and is a staff writer for the Campus Times. He is also the sports broadcaster for La Verne Athletics, ULV Choral Organization president and LeoFM promotions director.
Emily Casillas is a junior photography major with a concentration in sports photography. She is a staff photographer for both the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine, as well as La Verne Athletics. Her work can also be found at Shot2byEmily.
