I have a friend who was on his high school water polo team, and I talked to him a bit about whether the team had any traditions.  He told me about a rite of passage that everyone has to go through when they are freshmen and have just joined the team.  After one of the first practices, all of the seniors bring the freshmen into the locker room, and each freshman must swallow a goldfish in order to be truly considered part of the team.  He said that you could refuse, but nobody ever did.  Some people would consider this hazing, others just an initiation rite that everyone has to go through.  Having been through initiation rites myself for a separate organization, I will say that this merely appears to be a prank put on by older guys on my friend’s high school sports team.  My cross country team had its own rite of passage that we went through when we were freshmen, so I understand why it builds a sense of teamwork through a shared experience that everyone has gone through.  I disagree with those who would call it hazing, and I would challenge them to join an organization that has some traditions like my friend’s water polo team, because I believe that they can be immensely satisfying on a personal level.