Men’s Collegiate Water Polo Notebook: USC Takes No. 1 Position, Cal Drops to 4th

Column by Julia Lam

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, September 27. TRIPLE overtime, a buzzer-beater, and a dramatic come-from-behind win: the NorCal Tournament in Stockton, Calif., featured water polo at its finest, and resulted in a dramatic reshuffling atop the national rankings. Meanwhile on the East Coast, the U.S. Naval Academy and St. Francis College led the way decisively.

SoCal, NorCal Scuffle
On day one, September 21, Southern California, Stanford, UCLA, and former No. 1 California all sailed through their preliminary games.

But things heated up on day two, as the top teams made contact in the tank. USC routed Stanford, 10-3, with a balanced scoring effort and tight defense that held the Cardinals scoreless in the second and third quarters. UCLA – formerly ranked No. 4 in the varsity national polls – toppled Cal, 6-4, to earn the other spot in the title game. The Bruins led offensively throughout the entire game, as goalkeeper Chay Lapin pulled off 12 saves to hand the Bears their first defeat of the season.

Hours later, the Bears took on the Cardinals, looking to salvage a win for third place in the tournament. But in a thrilling game that saw an 11-10 triple-overtime decision, it was Stanford's Jeffrey Schwimer who notched the game-winner. Brothers Drac and Janson Wigo led the way for the Cardinals throughout the weekend, with nine and seven goals, respectively.

In the title match, USC and UCLA traded goal for goal in a tight, 6-5 contest decided with just seconds in the fourth quarter. The Trojans and Bruins each tallied one goal in the first quarter; UCLA pulled ahead for a slim 3-2 lead in the second; then USC pulled even, 4-4, in the third. The game and crown came down to the fourth quarter, and seconds remained on the clock as a 5-5 tie augured an overtime period. But the Trojans took control for the final possession, and junior Matt Sagehorn found the back of the net with three seconds to spare.

The result: a tournament title for USC (its third consecutive NorCal crown) as well as the No. 1 spot in September 24's national poll, released by the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA). Former No. 4 UCLA rose to No. 2, and Stanford stayed at No. 3, while former leader Cal dropped to No. 4.

East Coast Polo: Navy, St. Francis Domination
Before taking 13th place at the NorCal Tournament (including a celebrated win over the Air Force Academy), the U.S. Naval Academy took on two rivals at home in the CWPA Southern Division. The Midshipmen defeated George Washington University (18-8) and John Hopkins University (9-4).

In Cambridge, Mass., St. Francis College stormed through the Eastern College Athletic Conference to earn a No. 1 ranking in the CWPA poll and No. 11 national ranking. The Terriers – a multinational team consisting of 8 Serbians, 5 Hungarians, a Croatian, an Israeli, and 2 Californians – swept Princeton University (11-5), Bucknell University (17-9), and Johns Hopkins University (16-7). Johns Hopkins and Bucknell rounded out the top three finishers.

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