By The most important water polo region in America—contrary to opinions out West—is located primarily in the middle of the country. If the ill-named Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference-West can find a path to success, then there’s hope for polo to grow out of its small—and still precarious—footprint as a primarily West
GCC Coaches Favor Gauchos to Take Conference Title
When the University of California system chose to go remote for the entire 2020-21 academic year, the Golden Coast Conference was effectively sidelined for the fall 2020 season. GCC members Pepperdine and San Jose State did compete in an abbreviated 2020 season which ran earlier this year from January to
Five Questions with Fordham Head Coach Brian Bacharach
A ball drop at 9 a.m. in Harvard’s Blodgett Pool this past Saturday signaled collegiate water polo’s return to the Northeast following interruptions due to COVID-19. For Fordham men’s water polo, which during this period has seen a (mostly) revamped roster and a shifting of leadership, it was worth all
Five Questions with Alyssa Diacono, Mount St. Mary’s Head Coach
When Alyssa Diacono took the head men’s and women’s water polo job at Mount St. Mary’s in March 2020, she had no inkling that a global pandemic was about to halt all intercollegiate athletic competition in America less than two weeks later. Undeterred, the former standout for Carin Crawford at
Navy, Fordham Seek to Knock Bucknell from MAWPC Throne
Actually two conferences—East and West—which will compete for a berth in the national championship, its the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference East that has represented the East Coast in the past three NCAA quarterfinals. The team primarily responsible for this success has been Bucknell; in 2019 the Bison stormed into Cambridge
Princeton Beefs Up Roster to Challenge NWPC Champs Harvard
The Northeastern U.S.—particularly the large metropolitan areas surrounding Boston and New York City—was perhaps the region hit hardest by the coronavirus. So, it was no surprise that many universities in the region went fully remote for the 2020-21 academic year. Included in this group were the members of the Northeast
Aggies, Tritons Return to Challenge WWPA Champs Lancers
After an almost two-year layoff for many of its teams, starting this weekend the Western Water Polo Association will see all nine of its squads in action, including Biola University, which will field a men’s team for the very first time. Besides the fact that members UC Davis, UC San
Poets Angling for SCIAC Repeat
After an unbearably long layoff from competition, all nine members of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) will get back in the water on Saturday, September 4. It’s been almost 21 months since the last SCIAC men’s competition—which took place November 24, 2019 when Whittier beat Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) 13-12
Five Questions with Rick Nordell, Biola University Men’s Water Polo Coach
In May 2020, Dr. Bethany Miller, Bible Institute of Los Angles (Biola) University’s Senior Director of Athletics, introduced Rick Nordell as its first head men’s water polo coach. With his appointment, Nordell joined Sarah Orozco, former UCLA women’s water polo standout and Biola’s women’s coach, as part of the Eagles’
Water Polo Community Mourns Mercyhurst Coach Curtis Robinette
The condensed universe that is American water polo—and compact it is, with so many coaches, college programs and athletes present and past connected through a shared love for the sport—is just like family. Every memory treasured. Every win celebrated. Every loss lamented. And like any family, at the passing of
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