NBC has tabbed the women’s water polo team as a top contender among USA team sports to win gold in Beijing.

Five U.S. teams as good as gold

MATHEWSON OF UCLA NAMED MPSF TOURNAMENT MVP
UCLA senior attacker Courtney Mathewson (Anaheim Hills, CA/Canyon HS) was named MPSF Tournament Most Valuable Player as voted on by the conference coaches. She scored four goals in the semi-final win over Hawaii and three more in the championship against USC. Mathewson owns 50 goals on the year in 30 games (1.67 GPG) heading into the NCAA Tournament.
2008 MPSF ALL-TOURNAMENT SELECTIONS

MVP: Courtney Mathewson, Attacker, Senior, UCLA
Lauren Silver, Driver, Junior, Stanford
Jillian Kraus, Utility, Senior, UCLA
Veronika Bartunkova, Utility, Senior, USC
Kelly Mason, Shooter, Junior, Hawaii
Jenna Schuster, Driver, Junior, San Diego State
Amber Oland, Goalkeeper, Freshman, Stanford
Tumua Anae, Goalkeeper, Sophomore, USC

Dick Russell coached the Bucknell men’s swimming and diving team from 1968-94 and founded the men’s water polo program in 1977..  On Saturday at the age of 75, he passed away.

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Congratulations to the St. Francis men’s water polo team for earning the top GPA award. Read more

The NCAA has announced the 2008 women’s water polo tournament seeding and brackets. Click here for the brackets.

Here are the seeds:

1. UCLA (MPSF champ)
2. Stanford (at large)
3. USC (at large)
4. San Diego State (at large)
5. UC Davis (WWPA champ)
6. Michigan (Easterns champ)
7. Marist  (MAAC champ)
8. Pomona-Pitzer (SCIAC champ)

This is the eighth National Collegiate Women’s Water Polo Championship.  UCLA won its fifth women’s water polo national championship last year defeating Stanford 5-4. It was a “3-peat” for UCLA and the women’s water polo championship.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Most Valuable Player: Julie Hyrne, Michigan

Rookie of the Tournament: Jessica Dorman, Hartwick

Coach of the Tournament: Matt Anderson, Michigan

First Team: Kirsten Hudson, Hartwick; Ellen Sevigny, Hartwick; Leah Robertson, Michigan; Julie Hyrne, Michigan; Phoebe Champion, Princeton; Valentina Rozas, Bucknell; Natalie Kim (Goalie), Princeton.

Second Team: Megan Dahl-Smith, Hartwick; Elizabeth Hopkins, Maryland; Alexis Blaxberg, Brown;
Lauren Presant, Brown; Brooke Zimmerman, Indiana; Mary Chatigny, Michigan; Jessica Dorman (Goalie), Hartwick.

Pomona-Pitzer edged host Cal Lutheran to repeat as SCIAC champion and return to the NCAA Championships.

Their excitement may not be reflected in this statement from their website

MPSF have concluded.  What we know is, the following:

• UCLA is undefeated, beating cross-town rival USC 8-7
• UCLA, USC, and Stanford are in NCAA’s
• There is a very interesting “bubble” and tomorrow’s NCAA announcement will be controversial.  Hawaii and San Diego State find themselves on the bubble like last year with Cal joining bubble considerations
• San Diego beat CAL 12-11 in hopes of strengthening their case
• UH made it interesting finishing fourth via the semi

Catch up on the scores

Marist women’s water polo withstood a late surge from Iona to win 7-6 to earn the MAAC automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.

2008 MAAC Water Polo All-Tournament Team

Lauren Garrigan, Siena

Billy Hoelck, Wagner

Amanda Brucia, Iona

Lauren Peterson, Iona

Angie Rampton, Marist

Elizabeth Davis, Marist

Tournament Most Outstanding Player

Katelin McCahill, Marist

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How about this, a 10-9 victory for UCDavis over Loyola Marymount to win the WWPA championship and earn a trip to NCAA’s.

Head coach Jamey Wright: When you have such deserving seniors as we have, you’re almost relieved to win this.  Every team and every coach works hard to get to this tournament. But this group of seniors has come such a long way, that I don’t think I could bear it if they didn’t win it. This win is a tribute to this group — they have done a tremendous job.

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University of Michigan women’s water polo defeated Hartwick 10-7 to earn a trip to the NCAA tournament.  Congrats to Michigan.

The NCAA Championships will be Fri.-Sun., May 9-11 in Palo Alto, Calif. The NCAA field and tournament bracket will be announced on Monday, April 28, at 7 p.m. EDT on CSTV.

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