PINECREST, Fla. (BVM) — Some people choose to play the sport they love. But for Alissa Pinciroli Pascual, she was born to play water polo. 

Pascual was born in Brazil but moved to Florida in middle school so that she could play water polo for Miami’s Gulliver Prep. While at Gulliver Prep, Pascual started to take water polo more seriously. And there, she realized her dream of playing water polo for one of the top universities in the United States was real.

Also, during this time, Pascual was part of the Olympic Development Program (ODP). While she was part of this program, she was considered one of the top players. She was the top scorer and also had the most steals of any player. She has also participated in the water polo Junior Olympics since her freshman year of high school.

But, her time at Gulliver Prep wasn’t the only thing that impacted her love for water polo. 

Her family has played a significant role in her growth in the sport. One family member that notably had an impact on her was her grandfather, Pedro Pinciroli Junior. He was a professional water polo player back in the 1960s. He participated in three Olympic games and was considered a top 10 water polo player in the world.

Another family member that has an impact on her is her mother, Cristiana Pinciroli. She was the captain of the Brazilian women’s water polo team for 15 years and played for four years professionally in Italy. 

“My mom and grandpa really influenced me to get into water polo,” Pascual said. “But after that, it sort of happened naturally because I got really into it, and I love the game.”

Another family member that has impacted Alissa’s love for sports is her grandmother, Olga de Andrade Pinciroli. She was recognized by the Swimming Hall of Fame as one of the most influential people for women’s water polo and also helped women’s water polo become an Olympic sport in Sydney, Australia, in 2000.

For her family, there has been a long line of success in water polo and other sports. And while her family has had so much success in water polo, Pascual believes that she was introduced to the sport she genuinely loves with their help.

Pascual’s family has been supportive of her efforts in the sport throughout her life. Even though they introduced her to water polo, they would always encourage her to go and play other sports to see how she liked the experience. Although, according to Pascual, her passion for water polo rose above the rest of the other sports.

“They always influenced me to do other sports too, but water polo happened very naturally,” Pascual said. 

As an athlete, one can be inspired by a handful of different things. But for Pascual, her mother and grandfather have been the biggest inspiration for Pascual throughout her water polo career.

“My grandpa and my mom have both helped me a lot. Now that my grandfather lives in Brazil, my mom has taken a lot of his words and has been that image for me,” Pascual said when asked who in her family is her biggest inspiration.

For Pascual, being in the ODP has brought forth so much success. Her talents have been recognized all across the country. And now, she will be joining the top women’s water polo program at Stanford. 

“It’s truly a dream come true,” Pascual said when discussing how she feels about the opportunity to play for Stanford. 

Stanford has been an extremely competitive water polo program for years; they have won seven national titles since 2002 while also making the championship game in each of the last 10 years. Lately, Stanford has been one of the top water polo programs in the nation. With USA Water Polo Hall of Fame coach John Tanner at the helm, the team is coming off a national championship win against USC. 

With all of Stanford’s past success in water polo, Pascual is guaranteed to go and raise her game to the next level to compete for a national title.

Now that Pascual has reached one of her dreams of playing for a top U.S. university, she is focusing on the opportunity that lies in front of her. Pascual signed her scholarship in November and plans to study either biological engineering, psychology, or human biology.

By committing to Stanford, Pascual has made her dream of playing water polo at the collegiate level come true. But in the meantime, Pascual will also be focusing on following in the footsteps of her grandfather, who played in the Olympics. 

“I’m going to let time decide that, but my dream is also to go and play in the Olympics; that would be awesome,” Pascual said.

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