Water Polo: Coskinas headed to USC

In February, Marina Coskinas helped the Corona del Mar High girls’ water polo team win its first CIF Southern Section Division 1 title in program history.

Last weekend, she committed to the defending NCAA Division 1 champions.

Call it a win-win situation for Coskinas, a senior center who said Wednesday night that she has verbally committed to play water polo at USC next year.

“I went on an official visit a few weeks ago, and I really liked how everything was very organized,” said Coskinas, who plans to be a pre-med student at USC. “The whole idea of the Trojan family was very appealing to me.”

Coskinas will be a prominent returning player this winter for a young CdM team. She started last year, scoring a key fourth quarter lob goal in the Sea Kings’ 6-5 Division 1 final win over rival Newport Harbor.

At USC she will also be reunited with her good friends the Haralabidis sisters, Stephania and Ioanna, who graduated from CdM in June after transferring from Greece. The Haralabidis sisters lived with Coskinas’ family last year, as the families knew each other well from when they both lived in Greece.

“Our dads grew up together since preschool,” Coskinas said. “When we lived in Greece, they’d come over for barbecues and we’d have sleepovers.”

USC, which will also have former Newport Harbor star Kaleigh Gilchrist returning for her senior year, finished 27-1 in 2013 en route to its fourth national title. Coach Jovan Vavic was named national coach of the year.