Anae stepped in without a hitch for Sea Kings water polo

female-athleteofweekIt doesn’t look like Corona del Mar will skip a beat with first-year varsity starter minding the net.As a goaltender for the Corona del Mar High girls’ water polo team, Tumua Anae doesn’t get many chances to show off her speed -- the 5-foot-11 senior swam the 50-yard freestyle and helped the Sea Kings win a CIF swimming title her sophomore year.

But she doesn’t mind so much.

“I love playing goalie,” she said. “And I can still incorporate swimming in certain situations -- like counterattacks.”

Anae, a first-year starter for the four-time defending CIF champion Sea Kings, showed she wouldn’t be a weak link when she tallied 14 saves in Corona del Mar’s 7-6 victory over Newport Beach on Dec. 21. Anae made point-blank saves on Newport Harbor’s Calli Manderino and Sarah Roberts in overtime.

“She saved us in a few spots,” Corona del Mar Coach Aaron Chaney said.

Not bad for a girl who didn’t play water polo her freshman or sophomore year, concentrating on swimming.

But water polo is in her blood -- her sister, Jordan Anae, was the CIF Southern Section Division II Co-Player of the Year for the Sea Kings last year -- so perhaps it was only a matter of time before she came back to the sport.

Anae, who played two years of junior water polo before entering high school, started playing again the summer before her junior year.

She quickly blossomed and this year became the starting goalie on one of the best teams in Southern California.

“She had good skills from the start, but she didn’t know the game,” Chaney said. “But like her sister, she is a great athlete. During the middle of last summer, she started getting really good.”

Anae said she was worried about replacing Brittany Fullen, who won three CIF titles with the Sea Kings.

“Those are huge shoes to fill,” Anae said. “But playing with the varsity team during the summer helped.”

Anae is a smart player who is physically gifted.

“She has great legs and a great reach,” Chaney said. “She picked up the position pretty fast -- she can read where the ball is going.”

Anae said she battled jitters early in the Newport Harbor game, but overcame them.

“The first half I was a little nervous -- I was rocky,” Anae said. “The second half, I got into a groove and in overtime, it was pure adrenaline.”

Anae said she believes mental toughness is the key ingredient she’ll need for continued success this season.

“You’re only involved in half of the action, so you have to get pumped up for when the ball comes to your half of the pool,” she said.

THE TUMUA ANAE FILE

Hometown: Newport Beach

Height: 5-foot-11

Weight: 140

Sport: Water polo

Position: Goalkeeper

Coach: Aaron Chaney

Favorite food: Soyu chicken

Favorite movie: “Pride and Prejudice”

Favorite athletic moment: “Winning CIF my junior year in water polo and winning CIF my sophomore year in swimming.”

Week in review: Anae made 14 saves, including multiple saves from point blank range in overtime, to lead the Corona del Mar girls’ water polo team to a victory over Back Bay rival Newport Harbor.20051231LC1MHG86No Caption20051231isc7rbncKENT TREPTOW / DAILY PILOT(LA)