The Lancer Way: Matt Diacono

The Lancer Way is a new platform provided by California Baptist University's Athletic Department that allows student-athletes to share their stories. All of the words are their own.

Written By: Matt Diacono, Men's Water Polo, Sr., Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.

Let me start off by saying this, I am not a writer.

I am a mechanical engineering student.

I am a captain on the CBU men's water polo team.

I am the Business Manager for the Formula SAE team.

I am many things.

But, I am not a writer.

When our director of athletics communications, Andrew Shortall, emailed me earlier this week asking me to write an article about my life and my reasons to come to California Baptist University, I thought he was playing a joke on me.

Well, I'll save you some drama, it was not a joke, and yes, he picked me.

So here I am, sitting in 8E (yay middle seat) on Southwest flight #246 from Ontario to Sacramento on the way to our first conference game of the year against UC Davis, and I'm fired up.

Now, I have an hour or so sitting between these two gentlemen who were kind enough to open their hearts and share their armrests with me, as I reflect on my journey of coming to CBU.

If I remember correctly, I straight up told my dad I wasn't going to CBU. Not a chance. Not in a million years. Why would a kid from Orange County decide to go to Riverside willingly? I thought I was on a one-way train to my dream school, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Well, the funny thing is, CBU was actually my dream school; I just didn't know it yet.

Naturally, my father still filled out the CBU prospective athlete form because, "you never know Chewy."

Congrats Matthew 'chewy' Diacono. Newest CBU Lancer @LancerWaterPolo @SETWPC @tesoroH2Opolo @ocvarsityguy pic.twitter.com/zqFYYG1ima
— 3 Polo Kids (@3polokids) February 4, 2016

Oh yeah, my nickname is Chewy if you didn't know. More people know about that name at CBU than my real one, but if you have a big personality, you need a big nickname to back it up. You know the deal.

The next day, I received an email from Jeremy Hare, then assistant coach of the Men's Water Polo team, asking about my interest in the school. It's amazing how much your interest changes when you find out the person on the other side likes you. So, looking back six years later, I guess I changed my mind about CBU since that one night.

Ok, and maybe my dad knew something I didn't.

When first visiting CBU, I thought it was pretty nice. I didn't think it was particularly special, but I thought it had potential. The things I was truly amazed at was how small the Athletic Performance Center was (keyword was) and how tiny the engineering building was (keyword also was). Even with the fact, these two facilities are not what you picture when you look up the definition of success, CBU Athletics and the College of Engineering were thriving.

Once I learned that I was instantly sold on California Baptist University.

It didn't matter the circumstance, I knew that this school meant business and wanted to be a part of that culture and the growth that the school was enduring. Also, the food on campus might've helped.

Luckily enough, Coach Rosa allowed me the opportunity to be an engineering student and have a spot on the water polo team when other schools wouldn't even consider it.

This type of commitment to my growth as an individual only made me want to work harder for the team throughout my time here.

It's funny, a lot of people give me a strange look when I say I'm majoring in engineering and playing a sport.

They probably think I'm crazy, and that's fine.

"Isn't it hard?" Well, yeah. Why would I do something if it didn't make me learn and grow?

I even had a professor tell me the other day that he was surprised I've made it this far without switching majors or quitting water polo.

I don't look at it that way.

I'm going to embrace every moment I have here and make it my best.

So, to summarize my life at the moment in a few sentences:

I just finished an amazing engineering internship in Corona where I met great people and learned a lot about the business world.

I wake up in the morning and have an opportunity to play a sport where only a few hundred men across the nation get the chance even to sniff a roster spot.

I go to class in a brand-new engineering building that has won multiple awards for being aesthetic.

I get to be the Business Manager for the Formula SAE team where we build a racecar every year for fun and because sleep is for noobs.

I have the honor to be a captain for the best band of brothers that a guy could ask for.

I get to be a Lancer.

Oh yeah, when you go to the school you were meant to attend, you meet some pretty awesome people along the way.

Shout out to the boys who love fast food and expensive ice cream way too much. Because, same.

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