The team was down by seven, but as the players huddled on the edge of the pool, their conversation had nothing to do with the winning goal.
“This one’s for Grier,” the Pirates shouted before swimming out to play the last quarter. “YARRR!”
Players, family and friends gathered at the Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center in Thornton on Saturday for the Grier Laughlin Memorial Water Polo Tournament.
Grier Laughlin, 37, was killed Feb. 20, when a Ford Taurus, traveling in the wrong direction on E-470, collided head-on with his Chevrolet Yukon sport utility vehicle.
Laughlin and the driver of the Taurus, Odean Wheetely, 89, died at the scene.
Laughlin’s three children — 4-year-old twins and a 6-year-old daughter — who were in the Yukon at the time of the accident suffered minor injuries.
In 2003, Laughlin founded Colorado Water Polo and served as its head coach, launching the club with just eight eager players. He continued to introduce kids to the sport, coaching several teams in the metro area.
Teams of all levels traveled from across the country to play in the tournament, which continues today. Proceeds will go to a memorial fund to aid the Laughlin children.
“He was the embodiment of what a coach should be for a child,” Laughlin’s wife, Karen, said before the tournament. “He took in a child who could barely swim and could give them the confidence to play the game.”
Karen Laughlin said she used to tease her husband that he was too tough on the players. He always told her they would come back, and they always did, she said.
Andrew Isaacson, 23, who played in one of the tournament’s alumni games, was a sophomore in high school when he met Grier Laughlin six years ago.
“Grier’s personality hooked me before I knew what water polo was,” Isaacson said.
Isaacson continued to play water polo after high school and was president of Colorado State University’s club team in his senior year.
Laughlin surprised Isaacson last spring when he attended his graduation in Fort Collins.
“I hope I bring all the lessons he taught me to every part of my life,” Isaacson said.
Karen Laughlin said she has received an outpouring of e-mails and letters, some from as far away as Paris and Japan, telling her how much her husband meant to them.
She said Laughlin was an amazing husband, and she hopes one day the letters will show her children how wonderful their dad was.
Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794 or jsteffen@denverpost.com
