Top-Rated California Seeks Ninth NCAA Water Polo Championship

California begins its quest for an unprecedented ninth NCAA water polo title today at the Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach.

The top-ranked Golden Bears (26-1) open the three-day tournament by playing No. 13 Brown (20-9) at 3 p.m., followed by second-ranked Stanford (24-5) against No. 10 Air Force (19-6) at 4:30 p.m. and No. 3 UC Santa Barbara (22-7) against 12th-ranked Navy (24-5) at 6.

The best matchup of the first round, however, is expected to be at 7:30 p.m. between fourth-ranked UCLA (22-7) and No. 5 Pepperdine (21-8). The Waves, who have won 15 of their last 16 matches, handed Cal its only loss, 12-11, in Berkeley and also won one of three meetings against the Bruins.

Cal, Stanford, Santa Barbara and UCLA have combined to win 18 of the previous 22 national titles. Navy, Air Force, Brown and Pepperdine have never won.

Said Pepperdine Coach Terry Schroeder: “There are probably five teams that have a real legitimate chance at winning the NCAA title, but California is the favorite.”

Consolation and championship matches continue Saturday and Sunday, with the title match scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Sunday.