Former Drake water polo star avoids coronavirus scare at Stanford

Quinn Woodhead wasn’t far away when his Stanford water polo teammate received his negative test result for coronavirus on March 14. In hindsight, it’s fortunate the housemates didn’t celebrate with hugs or high-fives.

“I was with him when he found out it was negative,” said Woodhead, who won Marin’s first NCS D-I title at Drake High in 2015. “But I wasn’t super close to him. I was actually joking like, ‘I’m still not going to get around you.’”

The precaution paid off a day later when Stanford’s on-campus testing clinic called Woodhead’s teammate back. There had been an error with his test — the result was, in fact, positive. That meant the whole house, including Woodhead and the rest of the defending national champion Cardinal, could have been exposed to the virus. Even more troubling, many of his teammates had just returned home to their families.

“(Stanford) had one of the quicker tests, but it ended up being wrong in the beginning, which was a little startling,” Woodhead said. “One of my buddies had even driven down to L.A. with the guy who tested positive, unknowingly, because we thought he tested negative.”

Rather than risk spreading the virus to his parents, Woodhead self-isolated at his family’s beach house in Bodega Bay for the next five days. Last Friday, he returned to Stanford for a drive-thru test scheduled just a day in advance.

“It was pretty weird,” Woodhead said. “You pull up in a car, they only take one person at a time, you just roll down your window and they’re in all the protective gear. It was definitely an experience, felt like I was in a movie.”

And the nasal swab?

“Yeah, that’s no joke,” he chuckled. “Just kept going.”

Within two days, though, Woodhead received his test result: negative. His teammates have enjoyed similar luck, too. Woodhead’s housemate who tested positive has already recovered, and as of press time, no other Stanford water polo players have registered positive tests.

“I’m thankful for Stanford having a super quick, efficient test,” Woodhead said. “That was definitely helpful. Doing our part to not spread it anymore is important.”

After a week playing guitar and practicing headstands in quarantine, Woodhead finally returned home Monday to a crowded house that now includes his older brother, Dylan, an Olympic hopeful whose training is on hold.

“Quarantine with the family is more beneficial,” Woodhead said. “It’s good to be home.”