Second of two parts

Re “What It Was, Was Water Polo”

[img]1676|exact|||no_popup[/img]One reason Centaurs’ varsity and JVs are unbeaten is because players such as Samantha
Coleman play strong defense. Photo by George N. Laase

Journalists who cover Culver City High School are losing a terrific interview – a gift for the community – if they don’t interview the water polo team’s almost coach-for-life, Nestor Dordony.

I wrote sporting news for more years than the oldest student has been alive – professional and amateur teams – and yet I never heard a coach make the sterling observations about his players that Mr. Dordony did.

“You have to be very intelligent to play water polo,” he said.

Who knew?

Unlike student athletes in other sports, Mr. Dordony says his players did not grow up playing water polo on a routine basis.

None of them had played water polo before taking The Plunge – by storm.
 
This is a man you should know about and, and he has players whom Culver City parents should appreciate as much as they do athletes whose teams warrant coverage.

When the Super Bowl was played here 30 years ago and the Miami team was undefeated, the Hall of Fame coach Don Shula never was moved to say, “you have to be smart to play in the NFL.”

Mr. Shula would have been laughed into basketball season. Did you ever hear a pro football player speak a full sentence without committing a grammatical gaffe?

It was a joy last Friday to spend minutes with Mr. Dordony, who is in his 32nd water polo season at the high school.

His varsity and junior varsity teams are undefeated, and only days are left in the schedule.

He sounds like a proud papa raving about his children.

Lest you think Mr. Dordony will take credit for the perfect seasons, he will tell you that nine of his 13 players are seniors – and that is why.

“They have been playing for four years,” he says, because “they have a lot of talent, a lot of talent.”

There may not be a single enclave on the planet where a reporter is assigned to the water polo beat, but that is a pity because the water poloists have better stories to tell than many athletes.

Partially because of his good-person makeup and partly because English is not his first language, Mr. Dordony speaks carefully, lingering languorously over each word.

It is as if he were a world-class pastrymaker preparing a grand cake for the leader of the kingdom.

He utters each word with a modest, sensitive sunburst of pride, as if a couple syllables may need to bake in the oven one more moment.

This is the type of person you want to be in charge of your children during the school day.

“They have a big heart, and they work out hard,” Mr. Dordony says.

“Not only this year, but last year they worked hard and went to round two of the CIF playoffs.”

Can the Centaurs go all the way this year?

“I don’t know,” he says candidly.

“But we are going to be right there in the mingle.”