I sat down with our very own 8th grader-Ana Veitch to listen to some exciting news she had to share. Recently Ana attended Nationals in Texas on her team Yale Varsity POLO team (which is made up of local schools in the Upstate NY area)! I had so many questions that I needed to ask her and couldn't wait to start-

As she met me in the library I had to begin by asking her how she got involved in something so competitive and risky- She mentioned how it all began with her Grandmother, "My Grandmother loved the game of Polo and would always go in Saratoga- She got my brother lessons to learn how to play and I just followed in his footsteps- Our family is really big into horses (horse racing and Polo playing) so it just comes naturally to our family..." She has been playing polo for the last 2 years but has been around horses and riding for the last 5 years so Ana is very comfortable around them. 

As I continued the interview I had to ask, "Why Polo? It is so intense...." Her response as she beamed was, "I love the competitiveness! And the excitement of the game! The players are very opening and welcoming- they have so many different kinds of teams for all levels of people- There is a sense of family with it because it is such a small sport so everyone knows each other..."  Ana is so committed to this sport that she and her family travel to Connecticut to practice and to play in games- Her most recent opportunity was regionals which lead her to winning tons of games and over powering the score sheets! This stellar gaming led her team to Nationals which happened in Texas- She flew there and packed all her equipment and relied on the coaches to get her the best Polo horse possible for the event. She mentioned how, "You have to trust the US polo association and their horse picks- they are the top horses for the competition- also that all the players "swap" horses so it is a fair and even ride for all."  She mentioned how exciting the feel of the facility was- "It was beautiful and overwhelming all at the same time- there were tons of pictures to take and it was such a huge accomplishment to be there!" Even though their team did not place at nationals their coach and team mentioned how PROUD they were of each other- Overall Ana said, "It was a great experience to say that you have been there and done this- The people are what make it super fun to be around-"

We here at MAPLE are SO PROUD of you Ana! Awesome job reaching NATIONALS- It will be something you will remember always!