Isher Gill has beaten the odds on the way to matchup with twin brother Rahul
On the day his collegiate water polo dream began to crumble, Isher Gill was determined to get in a workout.
Back in July 2016, the Maryland teenager was a few weeks away from a walk-on tryout at GW to determine his future in the sport.
Sure, Gill had been dealing with back and leg pain throughout the summer, but a schedule packed with swimming workouts and shooting sessions seemed to explain his soreness and fatigue.
He headed to his local pool to get in his work like usual, unwilling to take an unplanned day off with the tryout looming. It was the mindset he'd needed to go from a water polo newbie as a ninth-grader to a prospect worthy of a shot at a Division I roster as a recent high school graduate.
This time, the feeling was different, though. Each kick was agony, each lap harder than the last.
Gill's mind told him to keep pushing, but his body began to shut down. Exhausted, he hoisted himself from the water and practically crawled to the locker room. He summoned just enough energy to steer his car home and collapse into bed.
"It just got worse and worse," Gill said. "Finally, I just hit the breaking point."
Gill, as he'd soon find out, had a serious problem with implications far beyond water polo. He was suffering from blood clots in his legs as a result of IVC Thombrosis due to an issue with the major vein responsible with returning blood from the lower body to the heart.
Gill spent about a month in the hospital after surgery to break up the clots and the required rehabilitation. When he was expecting to be trying out for the Colonials, he was instead learning to walk again.
"I don't know what would've happened if they didn't find it when they did," Gill said, "but they said it wouldn't have been good."
That harrowing start to Gill's time at GW makes Sunday's game against Connecticut College all the more special. After serving as a manager in his first season on campus, the redshirt sophomore attacker has put in the work to achieve his goal, earning a place with the Colonials thanks to his upbeat presence on the pool deck and continued improvement.
On Sunday, Gill will get to square off with his twin brother Rahul and the Camels at Charles E. Smith Center Pool in front of a slew of friends and family.
"It's been pretty inspirational to all of us around him," Rahul said. "Just to see how he made a huge, life-threatening injury seem like such a minor speed bump. That's just how he is as a person."
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Of course, it's impossible to tell Isher's story without Rahul.
The Gill boys were inseparable growing up as they laid the foundation for what would be a rapid rise in water polo. They made for a balanced pair: Isher was the calm and thoughtful one, while Rahul was more bold with a penchant for acting first and dealing with the consequences later.
Well before they pushed each other in that sport, they stoked their competitive fires with backyard battles in baseball and football, video games, chess and races to see who could set the table the fastest.
"There was never a boring time, honestly," Rahul said. "We always found something to do. Sometimes it ended up a little heated, a little more competitive than it should have been, but it was definitely a lot of fun."
That attitude carried over to the pool. Inder and Livleen Gill never learned to swim growing up in India, so they made sure their children had swimming lessons as soon as they were old enough.
The pair were soon spending their summers competing for the local pool. Rahul's superior size and athleticism made him a natural, but Isher's commitment inevitably led him to catch up to his brother by the end of each season.
"It was always a competitive atmosphere," Isher said with a chuckle. "No one wants to be considered the worst twin."
By middle school, the boys had a sport for each season, but they were in the market for a new fall pastime at the Landon School. Isher had grown tired of soccer, and Rahul was ready to give up cross country.
They decided to try water polo on the advice of Walt Bartman, who coached both swimming and water polo at Landon. Their background in swimming and baseball proved beneficial, and diving into a new sport together helped accelerate the learning curve in spite of their late start.
"They're just really good-hearted, fun to be around, full of energy," Bartman said. "For me, it was great because they wanted to absorb everything you had to offer as a coach, and they loved to work hard. All of those pieces of the puzzle really, really helped to get them where they are now."
Indeed, the Gills found the fast track to water polo success. They were varsity starters as sophomores, college prospects by their junior years and the fuel stoking Landon's best season in school history as seniors.
They pushed each other every step of the way under the direction of Bartman and GW alum Patrick Holley, who serves as a Landon assistant.
They trained together, their days often starting with Isher rustling Rahul awake in lieu of a 5 a.m. alarm. Isher had the speed in the pool, while Rahul had the strength in the weight room. Neither wanted to fall behind, whether it was matching laps or reps on the bench press.
As teammates, they brought out the best in each other.
"As soon as we started playing, it just clicked for us," Rahul said. "In the pool, I knew where he was and he knew where I was without much communication. Just because we grew up playing all of this stuff with each other."
Yet, when it came time to pick colleges, the Gills had different ideas. Rahul had a friend who played at Connecticut College and made an early commitment there, while Isher wanted to stay closer to home at a bigger school, ideally one that sponsored a water polo team.
GW checked all the boxes. All that was left was to earn his spot on the water polo roster.
"Honestly," Isher said, "it was amazing to even get a tryout with a team like this."
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Everything changed the day Isher Gill's routine workout ended with a trip to the hospital.
At first, the doctor sent Gill home with pain medication, but when his legs began to swell, his mother, who works in health care, grew concerned. His parents rushed him back to the hospital and pressed for an ultrasound.
"I really think his mom saved his life," his father said.
Gill underwent two surgeries to blast away the blood clots followed by a painful night in which he had to keep his legs completely straight. It took weeks of rehabilitation before he was walking normally again.
Through a trying month in the hospital, the prospect of a return to the pool kept him going.
"He was very brave," his mother said. "I would not have been able to go through what he did. He never flinched even once. His thing was 'As long as I get better and I can play, it's all good.' I did not see him down even once."
Gill was out of the hospital in time for his first day of classes at GW, but there was no real road map to getting back to water polo because it was such a rare condition for a teenager.
At first, he couldn't play because of the blood thinners he was prescribed. He'd lost 15 pounds and all the progress he'd worked so hard for over the summer. Biweekly checkups monitored his recovery.
In the interim, Gill served as a manager with the water polo team. He filmed games, logged stats and became friends with the guys he hoped would eventually be his teammates.
"They were all really encouraging and really helpful," Gill said. "It's mostly because of them that I actually had the confidence to think I could come back and make the team."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Gill beat the odds just by getting back in the pool.
Six months removed from surgery, he got the go-ahead to resume training in January 2017. That meant he had about seven months to show that he deserved a spot with the Colonials.
From a far, Rahul did his best to offer support. In text messages and phone conversations, he reminded his brother that the setback could be a footnote in an incredible story of perseverance.
Once they started playing together again that summer, Rahul was even more sure.
"It's just a little microcosm of how he is as a person," Rahul said. "He's one of the most determined people I've ever met. When he wants to do something, he puts his whole mind to it."
A year removed from his frightening bout with blood clots, Gill finally got his tryout.
Head coach Barry King didn't take long to make his decision. After a marathon opening day that included an arduous swim workout and a high-intensity practice, he summoned Gill to his office and cut to the chase: "We're going to give you a suit."
Naturally, his first call after the meeting went to his brother.
"It was huge for me," Gill said. "It was really a dream come true. I can't remember if I've ever been more nervous than the week building up to that."
In the 14 months since then, Gill has backed up King's confidence.
After playing sparingly in 2017 on GW's run to its first Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference title, Gill has earned more time this fall. He's stronger and better equipped for the speed of the collegiate game.
More than that, he's become a vocal leader, quick to pump up his teammates during tough workouts or cut the tension with a joke. He has the respect of the group because of the way he carries himself.
"There aren't any ups and downs with Isher because it's pretty much always up," King said. "You see the general appreciation he has of the opportunity. He just takes full advantage of it every day, and I think that registers with the rest of the guys."
"He's kind of the heart and soul of our team," added senior Jack Kerwin.
For Gill, Sunday's matchup with Rahul's Connecticut College Camels offers the latest highlight in a water polo career that's defied the odds.
The Gill brothers haven't been able to see each other play in person much over the past three years. They've had to settle for the occasional livestream and phone calls to recap each weekend.
It was an easy decision for King to schedule this game with Connecticut College coach Matt Anderson, who spent a couple of seasons as King's assistant at Indiana.
Afterward, both teams will head to the Gills' home in Maryland for dinner to celebrate a special family.
"It's definitely weird because I've never played against him. Ever," Isher Gill said. "So that'll be interesting, but after everything that we've been through, I think it'll be a really cool atmosphere to play each other in the sport that we both really love. I know we've both been looking forward to it."
Back in July 2016, the Maryland teenager was a few weeks away from a walk-on tryout at GW to determine his future in the sport.
Sure, Gill had been dealing with back and leg pain throughout the summer, but a schedule packed with swimming workouts and shooting sessions seemed to explain his soreness and fatigue.
He headed to his local pool to get in his work like usual, unwilling to take an unplanned day off with the tryout looming. It was the mindset he'd needed to go from a water polo newbie as a ninth-grader to a prospect worthy of a shot at a Division I roster as a recent high school graduate.
This time, the feeling was different, though. Each kick was agony, each lap harder than the last.
Gill's mind told him to keep pushing, but his body began to shut down. Exhausted, he hoisted himself from the water and practically crawled to the locker room. He summoned just enough energy to steer his car home and collapse into bed.
"It just got worse and worse," Gill said. "Finally, I just hit the breaking point."
Gill, as he'd soon find out, had a serious problem with implications far beyond water polo. He was suffering from blood clots in his legs as a result of IVC Thombrosis due to an issue with the major vein responsible with returning blood from the lower body to the heart.
Gill spent about a month in the hospital after surgery to break up the clots and the required rehabilitation. When he was expecting to be trying out for the Colonials, he was instead learning to walk again.
"I don't know what would've happened if they didn't find it when they did," Gill said, "but they said it wouldn't have been good."
That harrowing start to Gill's time at GW makes Sunday's game against Connecticut College all the more special. After serving as a manager in his first season on campus, the redshirt sophomore attacker has put in the work to achieve his goal, earning a place with the Colonials thanks to his upbeat presence on the pool deck and continued improvement.
On Sunday, Gill will get to square off with his twin brother Rahul and the Camels at Charles E. Smith Center Pool in front of a slew of friends and family.
"It's been pretty inspirational to all of us around him," Rahul said. "Just to see how he made a huge, life-threatening injury seem like such a minor speed bump. That's just how he is as a person."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Of course, it's impossible to tell Isher's story without Rahul.
The Gill boys were inseparable growing up as they laid the foundation for what would be a rapid rise in water polo. They made for a balanced pair: Isher was the calm and thoughtful one, while Rahul was more bold with a penchant for acting first and dealing with the consequences later.
Well before they pushed each other in that sport, they stoked their competitive fires with backyard battles in baseball and football, video games, chess and races to see who could set the table the fastest.
"There was never a boring time, honestly," Rahul said. "We always found something to do. Sometimes it ended up a little heated, a little more competitive than it should have been, but it was definitely a lot of fun."
That attitude carried over to the pool. Inder and Livleen Gill never learned to swim growing up in India, so they made sure their children had swimming lessons as soon as they were old enough.
The pair were soon spending their summers competing for the local pool. Rahul's superior size and athleticism made him a natural, but Isher's commitment inevitably led him to catch up to his brother by the end of each season.
"It was always a competitive atmosphere," Isher said with a chuckle. "No one wants to be considered the worst twin."
By middle school, the boys had a sport for each season, but they were in the market for a new fall pastime at the Landon School. Isher had grown tired of soccer, and Rahul was ready to give up cross country.
They decided to try water polo on the advice of Walt Bartman, who coached both swimming and water polo at Landon. Their background in swimming and baseball proved beneficial, and diving into a new sport together helped accelerate the learning curve in spite of their late start.
"They're just really good-hearted, fun to be around, full of energy," Bartman said. "For me, it was great because they wanted to absorb everything you had to offer as a coach, and they loved to work hard. All of those pieces of the puzzle really, really helped to get them where they are now."
Indeed, the Gills found the fast track to water polo success. They were varsity starters as sophomores, college prospects by their junior years and the fuel stoking Landon's best season in school history as seniors.
They pushed each other every step of the way under the direction of Bartman and GW alum Patrick Holley, who serves as a Landon assistant.
They trained together, their days often starting with Isher rustling Rahul awake in lieu of a 5 a.m. alarm. Isher had the speed in the pool, while Rahul had the strength in the weight room. Neither wanted to fall behind, whether it was matching laps or reps on the bench press.
As teammates, they brought out the best in each other.
"As soon as we started playing, it just clicked for us," Rahul said. "In the pool, I knew where he was and he knew where I was without much communication. Just because we grew up playing all of this stuff with each other."
Yet, when it came time to pick colleges, the Gills had different ideas. Rahul had a friend who played at Connecticut College and made an early commitment there, while Isher wanted to stay closer to home at a bigger school, ideally one that sponsored a water polo team.
GW checked all the boxes. All that was left was to earn his spot on the water polo roster.
"Honestly," Isher said, "it was amazing to even get a tryout with a team like this."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Everything changed the day Isher Gill's routine workout ended with a trip to the hospital.
At first, the doctor sent Gill home with pain medication, but when his legs began to swell, his mother, who works in health care, grew concerned. His parents rushed him back to the hospital and pressed for an ultrasound.
"I really think his mom saved his life," his father said.
Gill underwent two surgeries to blast away the blood clots followed by a painful night in which he had to keep his legs completely straight. It took weeks of rehabilitation before he was walking normally again.
Through a trying month in the hospital, the prospect of a return to the pool kept him going.
"He was very brave," his mother said. "I would not have been able to go through what he did. He never flinched even once. His thing was 'As long as I get better and I can play, it's all good.' I did not see him down even once."
Gill was out of the hospital in time for his first day of classes at GW, but there was no real road map to getting back to water polo because it was such a rare condition for a teenager.
At first, he couldn't play because of the blood thinners he was prescribed. He'd lost 15 pounds and all the progress he'd worked so hard for over the summer. Biweekly checkups monitored his recovery.
In the interim, Gill served as a manager with the water polo team. He filmed games, logged stats and became friends with the guys he hoped would eventually be his teammates.
"They were all really encouraging and really helpful," Gill said. "It's mostly because of them that I actually had the confidence to think I could come back and make the team."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Gill beat the odds just by getting back in the pool.
Six months removed from surgery, he got the go-ahead to resume training in January 2017. That meant he had about seven months to show that he deserved a spot with the Colonials.
From a far, Rahul did his best to offer support. In text messages and phone conversations, he reminded his brother that the setback could be a footnote in an incredible story of perseverance.
Once they started playing together again that summer, Rahul was even more sure.
"It's just a little microcosm of how he is as a person," Rahul said. "He's one of the most determined people I've ever met. When he wants to do something, he puts his whole mind to it."
A year removed from his frightening bout with blood clots, Gill finally got his tryout.
Head coach Barry King didn't take long to make his decision. After a marathon opening day that included an arduous swim workout and a high-intensity practice, he summoned Gill to his office and cut to the chase: "We're going to give you a suit."
Naturally, his first call after the meeting went to his brother.
"It was huge for me," Gill said. "It was really a dream come true. I can't remember if I've ever been more nervous than the week building up to that."
In the 14 months since then, Gill has backed up King's confidence.
After playing sparingly in 2017 on GW's run to its first Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference title, Gill has earned more time this fall. He's stronger and better equipped for the speed of the collegiate game.
More than that, he's become a vocal leader, quick to pump up his teammates during tough workouts or cut the tension with a joke. He has the respect of the group because of the way he carries himself.
"There aren't any ups and downs with Isher because it's pretty much always up," King said. "You see the general appreciation he has of the opportunity. He just takes full advantage of it every day, and I think that registers with the rest of the guys."
"He's kind of the heart and soul of our team," added senior Jack Kerwin.
For Gill, Sunday's matchup with Rahul's Connecticut College Camels offers the latest highlight in a water polo career that's defied the odds.
The Gill brothers haven't been able to see each other play in person much over the past three years. They've had to settle for the occasional livestream and phone calls to recap each weekend.
It was an easy decision for King to schedule this game with Connecticut College coach Matt Anderson, who spent a couple of seasons as King's assistant at Indiana.
Afterward, both teams will head to the Gills' home in Maryland for dinner to celebrate a special family.
"It's definitely weird because I've never played against him. Ever," Isher Gill said. "So that'll be interesting, but after everything that we've been through, I think it'll be a really cool atmosphere to play each other in the sport that we both really love. I know we've both been looking forward to it."
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