by Ryan Mac Donald
Staff Writer
Isn’t it ironic? Don’t ya think? It’s like playing the team you just beat again.
The University of La Verne men’s water polo team will travel to Hawaii this weekend to compete in the eighteenth annual Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) tournament, and their first opponent will be the University of Redlands.
The Leopards defeated the Bulldogs last Sunday for the conference championship, and head coach Tim Hugar believes this next game will also prove to be very competitive.
Hugar said, “It won’t be the same emotions [in the game] as it was five days ago. But I’m sure both teams will be fired up. It’s a little different playing in a first round tournament than playing in a conference championship game.”
Teams from all across the western region will gather at the host school of Chaminade University to compete for the title. The schools include the No. 1 ranked University of California at San Diego, No. 2 ranked Loyola Marymount University, No. 6 ranked United States Air Force Academy, No. 5 ranked University of California at Davis, No. 6 ranked University of Redlands and No. 8 ranked Chaminade University at Honolulu.
The winner of this tournament will earn a berth to compete an the NCAA Final Four water polo championships in early December at host Pepperdine University.
The Leopards, who are ranked third entering into the tournament, earned this post-season berth by ranking in the top ten teams of Division III schools throughout its regular season, and by also defeating several Division I nationally ranked squads.
“We should do pretty good,” said junior Stephen Smith. “We’ve played all of the teams except UC San Diego, UC Santa Cruz and beaten everyone but Loyola Marymount University. I think we should make it to the finals, and we could even upset San Diego and win.”
In regular seasonal play, the Leopards have faced the Air Force twice before and were defeated 10-8 in the first meeting; however, the team rebounded when they played them for the second time, winning 11-9.
In the match against Loyola-Marymount University (LMU), the Leopards were defeated 8-6, but in this game, the team played without one of their leading scorers.
“LMU was the only team we lost to and that was without Kenny [Clements],” said Smith. “Being full strength, we should pose a threat.”
Playing against Chaminade University at the Claremont Convergence tournament, the Leopards easily defeated the Silverswords in their only meeting in the season, 14-7.
Early in the season, the Leopards played UC Davis, and after four quarters, the Leopards defeated the Aggies, 9-6. This victory was especially crucial for the La Verne squad because the Leopards demonstrated an impressive ability to compete and win over a nationally ranked team.
The Leopards have faced the Bulldogs three times in the regular season, and on two occasions, the Leopards have been victorious. However, each game has been extremely tight, with each possession crucially important.
“The season is on the line [in this next game against Redlands],” said Smith. “They are fired up, and they are not happy with us. They will be tough because they watched us celebrate in our pool, and they don’t want to lose.”
Stats and Stories
ULV Water Polo Roster
1 — John Steifeling — Goal — Jr — Hacienda Heights
1A — Gage Fisher — Goal — Sr — Hacienda Heights
3 — Tom Merryman — UT — Jr — Rancho Cucamonga
4 — Matt Ganey — DR — Fr — San Dimas
5 — Sean Smith — UT — Jr — Rowland Heights
6 — Alan Shumway — DR — Jr — Mira Loma
7 — Kenny Clements — DR — Fr — Rowland Heights
8 — Brady Kocher — DR — So — Riverside
9 — Ian Gratz — UT — So — La Verne
10 — Fred Sicard — 2M — Sr — Hacienda Heights
11 — Stephen Smith — DR — Jr — Rowland Heights
12 — Jason Shumway — UT — Jr — Mira Loma
13 — Ryan Penrod — DR — Sr — Whittier
14 — Rey Lopez — DR — Jr — Rancho Cucamonga
15 — Jason Walters — DR — Fr — Tacoma WA
Coach: Tim Hugar
Water Polo Log
Sept. 3 — UC Santa Barbara, La Verne, L 8-12
Sept. 9 — Pomona, San Diego Tourney, W 16-4
Sept. 9 — Air Force Academy, San Diego Tourney, L 8-10
Sept. 10 — Redlands, San Diego Tourney, W 8-6
Sept. 10 — Santa Clara, San Diego Tourney, W 10-7
Sept. 15 — UC Davis, La Verne, W 9-6
Sept. 15 — Navy, La Verne, W 9-6
Sept. 16 — Princeton, La Verne, L 5-6
Oct. 1 — Air Force, La Verne, W 11-9
Oct. 11 — Loyola Marymount, Los Angeles, L 6-8
Oct. 13 — Brown, Claremont, W 7-4
Oct. 13 — St. Francis, Claremont, L 8-9
Oct. 14 — Iona, Pomona, W 10-9 OT
Oct. 14 — Chaminade, Pomona, W 14-7
Oct. 18 — Redlands, La Verne, L 8-9
Oct. 21 — Pomona-Pitzer, La Verne W 13-7
Oct. 21 — Chapman, La Verne, W 9-1
Oct. 25 — Occidental, La Verne, W 17-4
Oct. 28 — Whittier, La Verne, W 14-7
Nov. 1 — Claremont-M-S, Claremont, W 15-5
Nov. 3 — UC Santa Clara, La Verne, W 9-6
Nov. 3 — Caltech, Pasadena, W 17-7
Nov. 11 — *Caltech, La Verne, W 17-4
Nov. 12 — *Whittier, La Verne, W 8-2
Nov. 13 — *Redlands, La Verne, W 6-5
Nov. 17 — WWPA Championships, Hawaii
Nov. 18 — WWPA Championships, Hawaii
Nov. 19 — WWPA Championships, Hawaii
Dec. 2 — NCAA Championships, Pepperdine
Dec. 3 — NCAA Championships, Pepperdine
*SCIAC Championships
Ryan Mac Donald
