Guidance, Hard Work Prepares Henningsen for Michigan
11/1/2019 11:48:00 AM | Water Polo, Features
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan water polo freshman Jess Henningsen received valuable advice from her mother, Andrea, and from current U-M sophomore Erin Neustrom before coming to Ann Arbor.
Andrea played water polo at the University of California from 1986-90 and was on the U.S. National Team from 1989-93. Jess started playing around the age of seven, before focusing more on soccer. After four years of soccer, she started to lose interest and Andrea suggested she go back to water polo.
"I started again and fell in love with it," said Jess. "I haven't played any other sports."
In her hometown of Moraga, California, aquatics was a big part of Jess' life growing up. She started recreational swimming at three years old. Her father, Danny May, was a swimmer at BYU (1984-86, 1988-90). Her older brother, Tennyson May, played water polo at UC Davis (2012-16) and her younger brother, Davis Henningsen, also has played water polo in high school.
Despite her mother's accomplishments in the sport, Jess said that she was hands-off when it came to coaching. However, she did offer plenty of advice on the hard work it takes to be successful.
Henningsen and her mother, Andrea
"She knows that the sport today is so much different but she knew what hard work is all about," said Jess. "As long as you work hard, everything else will fall in to place. There is no substitute for hard work."
Jess has used that advice to become the player she is today. Head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi refers to her as a "spark plug" for her energy and ability to go up and down the pool quickly.
Here, teammates are also noticing what she can do in practice, but two of her teammates helped Jess discover Michigan during the recruiting process as sophomores Neustrom and Sidney Vranesh were also high school teammates of hers.
"I first heard about the program when Erin committed," said Jess. "I didn't know anything about Michigan but as she went through her process I started looking into it more."
The first impression Jess got was unusually cold weather as Michigan was experiencing a polar vortex with below zero temperatures during her junior day. However, it was the warm feeling she received from the team culture that was her big takeaway.
"It was such a warm community and everyone seemed so happy to be here," she said. "Seeing how they were as a team and how much they cared for each other, the chemistry they had really sold me on it."
Jess kept in close contact with the coaches over the summer leading into her senior year and committed the following October with Neustrom and Vranesh already on campus. They were able to offer plenty of insight into what it was like to be a Wolverine.
"She would ask questions to help her navigate the process like what classes to take," said Neustrom. "I know I had those people when I was coming in to offer advice. I think that is what makes Michigan so special. Everyone makes an effort for everyone to feel involved and feel comfortable."
Another great piece of advice Jess received from her mother was to explore different interests in college. Jess has an interest in studying law and plans to minor in criminology and justice. She is taking some different classes to see which major would best fit her.
The advice she received has got her off to a great start in her first two months on campus.
