Who We Are

Brenda Villa

Hailing from the largely Hispanic community of Commerce, CA, Villa played high school water polo with the boys before girl's water polo was widely available and became the first person from her high school (Bell Gardens) to attend Stanford University. A 4-time water polo Olympian, Brenda was a U.S. national team member for over 16 years, captained the team, and was named player of the decade in 2010 before taking home the gold at the 2012 Olympic Games. Now, Brenda is working to impact the pool in a different way - by reaching communities like her hometown of Commerce to expand diversity in water polo and other aquatic sports.

Kyle Utsumi

Kyle Utsumi is a coach and teacher who has worked with all age groups throughout his career. Kyle is a member of the Stanford University women's water polo coaching staff where he’s helped guide the team to multiple NCAA championships. He has introduced the sport to newcomers, guided student-athletes into college programs, and coached at international competitions for Team USA. Kyle currently teaches a Humanities course focused on civil and human rights at Woodside Priory School in Portola Valley, Calif. His work with the Brenda Villa Foundation brings together his passion for aquatics and desire to grow the sport of water polo.

Kelsey Holshouser

Kelsey has been involved in aquatics activities since age 3. Her love of aquatic sports, and dedication to water polo, led her to Stanford University where she captained the water polo team and graduated with a degree in Management Science & Engineering. While working in the tech start-up world during the day, Kelsey spends her free-time coaching water polo and applying her tech operations experience to helping break down barriers to entry in the aquatics sports world.