Championship Adds Spice to Pinciroli’s U.S. Experience

Enrolling at El Toro High began as a language thing for Brazilian Bill Pinciroli.

It later turned out to be a water polo thing.

Water polo is as traditional as empanadas in the Pinciroli family. His father played on two Olympic teams and his older sister is playing professionally in Italy.

But Pinciroli’s first objective in coming to the United States two years ago was to learn English, then to play water polo.

“I wanted to do both, but I would have come anyway,” Pinciroli said.

Because of Southern Section residency rules, Pinciroli, who is from Sao Paulo, Brazil’s capital, was forced to sit out the 1992 varsity season, playing on the Chargers’ practice team his junior year.

The layoff wasn’t disruptive. Pinciroli helped lead El Toro to a come-from-behind victory in the Division I Southern Section championship game, and was named the division’s player of the year. He had a team-high 89 goals, an impressive 61.4% shooting percentage and contributed 52 assists and 58 steals.

But Pinciroli isn’t the only talented Brazilian water polo player at El Toro. According to Charger Coach Don Stoll, had senior Marco Avanzi been eligible--he practiced with El Toro and was one of the team’s most ardent supporters--he would have threatened his fellow countryman’s chances for player of the year honors.

“(Pinciroli) was our best defensive and offensive player,” Stoll said. “But Marco was very good, too.”

Avanzi also came to California to improve his English and was disappointed he was unable to play. But he believes his presence in practices contributed to El Toro’s success.

“I think I helped the team to improve a lot,” Avanzi said. “I wish I could have played, but my main goal here was to learn English.”

Pinciroli was a Brazilian junior national team member for two years, but said the section championship was unlike any victory he has experienced.

“I’ll never forget that game,” he said. “It was more exciting because I wasn’t going to see the team together again.”

And he won’t soon forget winning the MVP award. “I wasn’t expecting that,” he said. “This is working very good for me.”

Things could continue to work well for him here because college recruiters have shown interest. But unlike some foreign athletes who come to the United States, he doesn’t plan to stay for college, not immediately anyway.

He hopes to return to Brazil in March and try out for the national team--as will Avanzi--for a chance to compete at this summer’s Pan American Games. Come September, he will enroll in a Brazilian university.

“It’s a big deal for me to be on the national team,” Pinciroli said. “I want to try for the Pan Am Games and possibly the Olympic Games. I’ll start college in Brazil, then maybe I’ll come back here or go to Italy.”

In the meantime, his time here has been time well spent, in and out of the pool. His English is much improved, as is his water polo game.

In Brazil, water polo is played only at the club level. Here, where quality high school and college teams abound, Pinciroli has been able to test himself more regularly.

“The (water polo) style here is different,” he said. “It’s more physical in Brazil; it’s more technical here. I’ve improved a lot here. I’ve learned a lot. It’s been great.”