University of Toronto Athletics

The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's water polo team is proud to announce the addition of Sarah Neal to their 2023-24 roster.
 
Neal started playing water polo for the Vancouver Vipers Water Polo Club at 11 years of age before transferring to the Pacific Storm when she was 13. She also swam and played water polo for Burnaby Barracudas Summer Swim Club from 2018-2021 winning MVP in 2019.
 
Playing on the Storm's U16 team, Neal won gold at the Western Finals, and then placed fourth at the national championships. Three times she received Storm's Most Improved Player award for her age group (2019, 2020 and 2022). In 2022, she started for the senior women’s team winning silver at nationals, and later that summer competed with Channel Islands United U18 team in USA Water Polo’s 2022 Junior Olympics (JOs). In 2023, she won Pacific Storm's John Stockdale Award and was also selected to play for Team BC, winning bronze at the U19 National Provincial Teams Championships.
 
“Sarah showed a lot of promise during her visit last year,” recalled Blues head coach, George Gross, Jr. “I also had the opportunity to see her play in California at JOs and was impressed by her driving ability when attacking the net.”
 
Outside of the pool, Neal was her high school’s student council secretary and was a leader in a peer mentorship program.
 
“I chose U of T because I wanted to play water polo at a high level while getting an excellent education,” Neal stated enthusiastically. “When I visited, I connected well with the players and coaches, so I knew that U of T was a great fit for me. I am so excited to live and study in Toronto while playing for this amazing and supportive team.”
 
Neal will study Life Science and reside in New College.