This Wave Can Make Big Splash in Pool

There are few things Alan Herrmann enjoys more than hopping on his mountain bike and attacking hills. Considering Herrmann is 6 feet 4 and 255 pounds, that might seem surprising.

But Herrmann pays little heed to what could be considered his off-road handicap, zipping around Southland trails as often as possible. Several years ago he even finished third in a mountain bike race at Camp Pendleton.

Sure, it was in the Sumo division, but that’s actually fitting, considering Herrmann usually can be found wrestling in a pool. And in water polo--the sport at which Herrmann excels--size is an advantage.

Today, Herrmann and top-ranked Pepperdine will open the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship at Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach. The tournament continues through Sunday, with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament Dec. 5 and 7 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Pepperdine, however, is virtually assured of an at-large bid in the four-team NCAA tournament even if the Waves don’t win the MPSF title, because of the No. 1 ranking the Waves have held most of the season.

Pepperdine (22-1) is in this position largely because of Herrmann, a fifth-year senior from Laguna Niguel.

Herrmann, a three-time All-Southern Section pick at Dana Hills High, was an immediate standout for Pepperdine, leading the team in scoring his first three years. Except for reaching the NCAA tournament in his sophomore year, the Waves hadn’t made a big splash as a team.

Herrmann and fellow All-American Jack Kocur each took a redshirt year in 1996, delaying their senior seasons to strengthen this Pepperdine team. So far the tactic has paid off; Pepperdine’s only loss was 4-2 to Stanford, a team it beat the three other times they played this season.

The Waves’ strength is balance--three players have scored at least 39 points. Golden West transfer Jeremy Pope has 48, Herrmann 46 and Kocur 39, and seven have at least 12.

In the middle of it all is Herrmann, the two-meter man. Two meters is water polo’s power position--the player usually nearest the goal with his back to the opponent’s goalkeeper--and Herrmann is never pushed around.

“He’s certainly the strongest guy out there,” Pepperdine Coach Terry Schroeder said.

Herrmann might look like an offensive lineman in the water, but he’s not dead weight. “He’s got incredible endurance for a big guy,” Schroeder said. “I’ve been continually surprised about how he can play four quarters, get beat on and hardly ever get beat [down the pool] on the counter attack.

“Two-meter men normally don’t like to swim.”

The combination of strength and stamina makes Herrmann a hot prospect for the U.S. national team.

“He’s got the national team coaches almost begging for him to come out,” said Schroeder, the two-meter man on three U.S. Olympic teams. “He’s probably the second-best two-meter man in the country right now next to Chris Humbert, who is the starting two-meter man for the national team.

“The national team could definitely use Alan.”

But Herrmann plans to walk away from water polo--at least temporarily--after the NCAA tournament.

Playing in the Olympics had always been a goal, but other priorities have moved to the forefront. Herrmann will graduate next month with a degree in accounting and start work at the Irvine office of a major accounting firm in January. He plans to marry his high school sweetheart, Jodi Stegmann, in July.

“I’m going to take some time off from water polo and work and get married and play a little bit,” Herrmann said. “If I truly miss the sport and have the desire from my heart to play on the national team, then I will do anything possible to play on the national team.”

Herrmann’s decision isn’t a popular one in the U.S. water polo community or even among some of his friends who would like to see him help the United States shoot for the gold medal at the 2000 Olympics.

“People say you can do everything you want to do later in life,” said Herrmann, sitting on the pool deck at Pepperdine, a polo ball nearly swallowed up by his powerful hands. “Some coaches ask, ‘Why aren’t you playing with the national team? You should be playing with them now.’

“That makes it hard because every time somebody says something like that to me, I question myself. ‘Why haven’t I done it? Should I have done it? Is it good that I’m not doing it? Am I going to do it in the future?’ All questions that I really can’t answer right now.

“It’s one of those things where I said I’d give 100% toward college and that’s all I’m focused on right now.”

And now he’s got his sights set on an NCAA title. Who’s going to block his way?

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MPSF Water Polo

The schedule for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation water polo championships (all games at Belmont Plaza Pool, Long Beach, unless noted):

Today

Pacific at Long Beach State, 8 a.m.; Cal vs. UC Santa Barbara, 9 a.m.; Stanford vs. UC Irvine, 10:30 a.m.; USC vs. UCLA, 1 p.m.; Pacific/Long Beach State winner vs. Pepperdine, 2:30 p.m.

Saturday

Consolation semifinals, 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.; Championship semifinals, 1 p.m.

Sunday

Seventh place, 9 a.m.; Fifth place, 10:30 a.m.; Third place, 1 p.m.; Championship, 2:30 p.m.