The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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12 THE WOLVERINE AUGUST 2020 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Water polo rising senior driver Emily Ritner started her Michigan career off with a bang, racking up 13 goals, 18 assists and 10 steals during her first two seasons as a Wol- verine from 2018-19. The Newport Beach, Calif., native then put together a career year in 2020 as a junior, setting personal bests in all three of the aforementioned categories by compiling 12 goals, 15 assists and 17 steals over the first 19 games. U-M's final 10 matches of the regular season were can- celed, however, putting a screeching halt to Ritner's stellar campaign. Here a few other interesting facts you may not have known about her: Nickname: "You'll never hear anyone call me Emily, even though it is my birth name. I go by Rosie, because it's my middle name. In high school, there were three Emilys on our team so somebody had to go by something different. My dad has been calling me Rosie ever since I was a little girl, and it just kind of stuck." Favorite restaurant in Ann Arbor: "Sava's is really hard to beat. It's such a cliché, but it's so good. Pretzel Bell is good, too." Best meal she can cook by herself: "I usually cook with one of my roommates, because it's easier to cook for two than for one. We eat salmon a lot, with any kind of teriyaki glaze. We also put it over stir fry with rice, broccoli and car- rots. It's healthy and filling, and boosts those nutrients after working out for four hours every day." Hobbies: "My roommates and I have an app called Rover, and it allows us to host dogs and cats at our house when- ever we get a request. We all have pets at home that we miss dearly throughout the year, so this is a win-win for every- body. We all get the luxury of having something clumsy to hug throughout the week. "Personally, I also like to hang out with teammates and grab meals with them, and I like spending time at the docks with them when it's nice out. I don't have a ton of spare time though." Favorite TV show: "I really like 'New Girl,' along with 'Fam- ily Feud' and 'Shark Tank.' They're all so fun." Favorite movie: "'Ice Age.' I'm such a little kid at heart, but the sloth makes me laugh so hard." Dream vacation: "I would love to go to Greece. My best friend and I are planning on going there after college and spending a couple months checking it out." Favorite place she's been to: "I've been to Maui a couple times and love it there. It's different than home for me, which is Newport Beach. I like Hawai'i because it's so beautiful." Favorite professional athlete: "[Former New York Yankees] shortstop Derek Jeter. I grew up watching the Yankees with my dad and would catch almost every single game with him. Jeter is an idol and just an awesome guy." Role model: "My sister, even though we took dif- ferent paths to Michigan — she's on the team with me. We're 15 months apart, so she has always gone first with everything and then I would follow in her footsteps. She has been easy to look up to and fol- low on this journey we've had together." Why she chose Michigan: "It would have been easy to go to Cal, USC or UCLA and stay in the Cali- fornia bubble. I wasn't one of those kids, though, and really wanted to experience seasons. We don't have those in Newport Beach. "I fell in love with Michigan's campus when my sis- ter took a visit there the first time. We all took a fam- ily college trip to Ann Arbor and I actually fell in love with it before she did. I like the Midwestern people because they're down to earth and have such big hearts. I also liked the football and school spirit Michigan has, because you can't compare it to anything else. "Another one of my deciding factors was that a lot of my other schools meant I would be majoring in water polo and minoring in school, or vice versa. Michigan was the perfect balance between both, because it's high end in each area." What she hopes to do after water polo: "I'm hoping to get a job somewhere in HR, marketing or sales. I'm doing a summer internship right now, and it involves business development in sales. It's giving me good insight into what I could potentially be doing in the future." Her overall experience at Michigan: "It has been reward- ing, but at the same time a bit of a whirlwind. It takes a spe- cial person to be a student-athlete at Michigan, especially coming from California. "It has been out of my comfort zone, but has also pushed me to become a person I never thought I'd be. You have to work at everything you do and nothing is handed to you. The outcome is, 'Those Who Stay Will Be Champions.' "This will open so many doors once I'm finished, and I wouldn't trade it in million years to go anywhere else." — Austin Fox Ritner posted career highs in goals (12), assists (15) and steals (17) during her junior campaign, despite the final 10 regular-season matches being canceled. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY Getting To Know Water Polo Rising Senior Driver Emily Ritner