Q&A Genidounias prepared to cap off stellar career
With the graduation of USC’s all-time leading scorer Nikola Vavic last season, the main man for the Trojans has been senior driver Kostas Genidounias. Hailing from Athens, Greece, the 6-foot-1 Genidounias has been an absolute scoring machine for the Trojans, posting 64 goals on the season.
Top Dog · Though he scored a remarkable 80 goals last season, then-junior driver Kostas Genidounias still could not match Nikola Vavic’s team-leading 81. This year, Genidounias’ 64-goal output is tops among Trojan scorers. – Brian Ji | Daily Trojan
Following the Trojans’ tough 10-8 loss to UCLA last weekend, Genidounias found some time in his busy schedule to give an interview to the Daily Trojan and talk about his pursuit of the school’s all-time scoring record, his “recruitment” and his least favorite exercise in practice.
DT: My first question would be that this season’s been called a “rebuilding year” because Nikola Vavic graduated and you’re taking over, but here you guys are again in the hunt for a national title. Would you characterize this as a “rebuilding year” for you guys?
KG: We have eight freshmen players playing significant minutes, so on the one hand it is a “rebuilding year,” but on the other hand we are contenders for a national championship. We feel like we’re there and we can win it. So we’re rebuilding because there are so many players, but we’re contending for a national title.
DT: You’re 11 goals away from passing up Nikola Vavic for the all time scoring record at USC. Was this one of your goals going into the year?
KG: Yeah, it is one of my goals, but I try not to let it affect my game and make me selfish or make me not pass the ball. It’s not as important as winning another championship.
DT: You wanted to be at USC, and you have an interesting recruiting story. You had to wait a year, can you talk about why it was so important to come to USC specifically?
KG: I just knew that they were number one, and that there was no other place I’d rather be.
DT: I heard a story where you emailed coach Vavic and reached out to him first.
KG: Yeah, I graduated a year early, when I was 17, and I e-mailed coach Vavic and a bunch of other schools but [Vavic] wasn’t really interested in the beginning. Then, that summer I played in the European Championship with the Greek Junior National team, and I had the letter of intent from LMU in my hand right before the European Championships but I decided to wait a little bit.
I went to the European Championships and played really well, my team got second place, we lost in the penalties to Italy. I won MVP of the tournament, and as soon as I got home I emailed Jovan. He asked me for my number and he immediately gave me a call, and he asked me if I could wait for a year and I said, ‘Yeah, I would love to.’”
DT: You’re in your last year. Do do you have any plans after you graduate, athletically or otherwise?
KG: I definitely want to go back home to Greece and try to play professionally for a couple years and try out for the Olympics with the national team.
DT: Diet is really important for all athletes, but especially water polo players. What does your average meal look like?
KG: In the morning I go to the Athletic Department where I can get breakfast burritos and bagels … I try to combine carbs and protein most of the time; carbs for energy for practice later on and proteins later on in the day. At the end of the days, after practice, I eat protein for the recovery process. Sometimes I burn too many calories, sometimes I go for a little dessert, like ice cream. One of my guilty pleasures.
DT: Does coach have a specific diet for you guys?
KG: He doesn’t have something specific for us day-to-day, but throughout the season when we go to tournaments and games, we always stick to pasta and light red sauce, or rice and potatoes. He always goes for chicken, you know, no red meat.
DT: What’s your least favorite thing to do in practice?
KG: I would say leg workouts with weight belts. Jovan loves his weight belts. Even though it’s a necessary thing, I’d say that’s my least favorite thing.
DT: Do you have any advice for club-level or high-school water polo players as far as what it takes to succeed and move onto the collegiate level?
KG: Commitment. Dedication. If you’re not all-in, if you’re not passionate about it, you can’t do it. Water polo is a sport where you really need to be committed and it takes a lot of effort to get to the next level.