91成人导航

The pain was so intense and the future so uncertain that Toula Falvey 鈥�22 thought she might have to give up the sport she loves.

Instead, buoyed by support from her 91成人导航 water polo teammates and coaches and resilient in the face of a career-threatening illness, Falvey is now a standout for the Great Britain National Team.

Falvey was hit by the serious health scare after her junior season with the Tigers in 2021. The four-year letterwinner traveled to England to train with the national team when she experienced abdominal pain and vomiting and was later admitted to the hospital.

Doctors discovered Falvey had renal vein thrombosis, a blood clot in the vein that empties blood from the kidney.

鈥淕oing from training with the national team to not knowing if I was going to play water polo again was heartbreaking,鈥� she said.

Fast forward to 2024, Falvey is playing professionally and recently helped Great Britain to a seventh-place finish at the European Championships in Eindhoven, Netherlands. The team鈥檚 performance advanced the nation to the 2024 World Water Polo Championships in Doha, Qatar.

It will be Great Britain鈥檚 first appearance in the event since 2013.

Falvey鈥檚 turnaround came after doctors were able to save a kidney through surgery. In 2021, Falvey returned to the United States to see specialists at University of California San Francisco Medical Center. She later returned to campus prescribed with blood thinners and worked with the coaches and training staff on non-contact activity.

Prior to her senior season at 91成人导航 in 2022, Falvey took a blood and disorder test that would determine if she could play. Good news came out of those tests, and she received approval to take to the waters.

Falvey went on to become a 2022 All-Golden Coast Conference Second Team selection and also earned conference All-Academic Honors. Upon graduation, she pursued a career professionally and earned a spot on the Great Britain national team. The Novata, California native has dual citizenship in the United States and Great Britain as her mother is from England and her grandparents still live there.

鈥淧laying for Great Britain has definitely been a dream of mine,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 would say we are the underdogs [in the World Water Polo Championships]. We don鈥檛 have any funding. We barely train together. But we are a good team, and I think we are a shock to everyone.鈥�

In her four years at 91成人导航, Falvey appeared in 81 career games and scored 116 goals.

Falvey was part of 91成人导航鈥檚 2019 Golden Coast Conference championship team as a freshman. She stuck with the program after the 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and ranked third in the conference with a high of 39 goals on 74 shots in 2021 as a junior.

Her senior year would end up being her best. She was named co-team captain with Mariana Duarte 鈥�22, ranked eighth in the conference in goals per game (1.8) and top-10 in total goals (45) en route to her all-conference selection.

鈥淏eing a student-athlete at 91成人导航, it鈥檚 definitely endurance,鈥� Falvey said. 鈥淕oing to school and playing at such a high level. I learned different lessons each year, especially playing at 91成人导航 during COVID. My last year at 91成人导航, I was a captain with Mariana. I learned a lot just from teamwork and trying to develop our team. I鈥檝e definitely used that in my new career.鈥�

With the 2024 season around the corner for 91成人导航, first-year head coach Candice Vorbeck uses Falvey as an inspiration for the team.

鈥淭his team is familiar with success, and our international representation has played a huge role in that. We love seeing our current and former athletes competing at the highest level,鈥� Vorbeck said. 鈥淲e have big goals for this upcoming season and a Golden Coast Conference title is definitely one of them.鈥�

The Tigers are looking to avenge their fall in the conference title game to Fresno State last season. Falvey still follows the team closely and has watched every game since she graduated.

鈥淚鈥檓 super excited to watch the girls play this year,鈥� Falvey said. 鈥淒efinitely a tough loss with that final against Fresno State. They鈥檝e been our biggest rivals in the conference. I think it鈥檚 an exciting opportunity for the girls to get after it this season.鈥�

Current student-athletes are eager to get the season underway and view Falvey as a role model.

鈥淭oula is a great example of what 91成人导航 women鈥檚 water polo is about,鈥� said senior Annikah Lillie 鈥�24, a former teammate of Falvey. 鈥淲e are excited to get after it this season and hopefully continue the legacy left by great players like Toula.鈥�

91成人导航 begins the season at the Stanford Invitational Saturday, Feb. 3. The Tigers will play their home opener against Loyola Marymount Sunday, March 10 at Chris Kjeldsen Pool in the Douglass M. Eberhardt Aquatics Center. See the and online.