Tomassi pushes his way up to nations elite

Water polo • 49er Reid Tomassi found his passion for water polo after he couldn't do a pushup during a high school practice. Claire Howie/Online Forty-Niner

 

By Claire Howie
Online Forty-Niner
Staff Writer

It took just one incident at a high school water polo practice to turn Reid Tomassi in to the athlete he is today.

"During pre-season training my sophomore year, my coach told me to get out because I missed a shot and do 10 push ups; I couldn't do them. He told me that if I was ever going to amount to anything in water polo that I needed to get a lot stronger."

It was that night when the 16-year-old Tomassi realized his passion for the sport. He was not willing to amount to nothing in water polo so he began working out every night before he went to bed.

At first he could only do five push-ups and 25 sit-ups, but after two and a half years of late nights spent working out on his bedroom floor, never missing a night, the 6-foot-5 165-pound 16-year-old had transformed into a 6-foot-6 195 pound senior being recruited by the coach of a nationally ranked Division I water polo program, Ricardo Azevedo.

Tomassi, a key offensive player for the 49ers, was recruited out of Winter Park, Florida, where he led his team to the state finals all four years, winning championships in 2001 and 2002. Tomassi was arguably the best water polo player in the state.

"Coming in from Florida, Reid was a physical specimen more than anything else," Azevedo said. "Here you've got a big kid, that's fast, strong and smart. I thought last year he surprised a lot of people with his athleticism."

There is no doubt that Tomassi was a big surprise to many teams. In 2003, as a freshman at Long Beach State, he ranked second on the team with 51 goals, the most ever scored by a 49er freshman. He had 16 multiple goal games, scoring five goals in three separate games.

Tomassi was the highest scoring freshmen and the highest scoring lefty in the NCAA last year, a fact that Kirk Everist, head coach of men's water polo at Cal Berkley won't soon forget. During Reid's senior year, Everist told him that he was not good enough to play California water polo and that he should look to play on an east coast team, in other words a less competitive team. To Reid, it is a "funny coincidence" that the Cal game last season was one of the three games he tallied five goals.

This season Tomassi continued to make an impact on the team. He led the team in assists with 33, and ranks second in goals scored with 41.

"He made the right strides," Azevedo said. "He became a better swimmer; he understands the game more. By the end of the year I thought he was a force to be reckoned with."

The highlight of this season was undoubtedly the second game at the MPSF conference championships last weekend. The team faced UC Santa Barbara, a team they defeated in overtime during regular season play. Tomassi led the 49ers to a second overtime victory over UCSB, scoring six of the teams 14 goals, a career high for him.

"Reid is a talented player who always strives to play his best," teammate and 49er goalkeeper Tom Onyshko said. "At MPSF he matured a lot as a player. In fact I think he played the best I have ever seen him play."

When Tomassi is not in the pool, classes and homework keep him busy. He plans to graduate in four years with a degree in finance, real estate and law.

Drawing inspiration from teammate John Filipponi, Tomassi chose to participate in numerous other organizations on campus this year.

"John took me under his wing when I got here," Tomassi said. "He is my biggest inspiration. He has really helped me get involved this year."

Tomassi is the treasurer of the Student Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) and a President's Ambassador for the university.

"Reid is a very outgoing, motivated guy," Filipponi said. "When he wants something, he goes for it; no matter what it is. He is very teachable, he listens and wants to learn. He wants to perfect his abilities in all that he does."

Tomassi's drive and determination will come in handy in achieving his life goals. After college, his ultimate dream is to play for the U.S. National Team. If that does not pan out he hopes to play professionally in Europe for a couple years.

"I'm Italian, so going to play in Italy would be amazing for me. I'd get to see the culture and play with Tony Azevedo, one of the best players in the world," he said.

With two years of eligibility remaining, Azevedo expects great things out of the southpaw from the Sunshine State.

"I expect that, after a whole year of working on his defensive skills and polishing his knowledge of the game, Reid will become a player that will be talked about for a long time," Azevedo said.