BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — The Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) will bring the Women’s National Collegiate Club Championship back to Pennsylvania on Friday-Sunday, April 17-19, as the 2026 championship will occur at the Carlisle YMCA Center at 103 Midway Drive in Carlisle, Pa.
It marks the second time a Women’s National Collegiate Club Championship will be hosted in Pennsylvania as the University of Pittsburgh served as the site of the 2017 event. Further, it marks the third time a site will serve as host for both the Men’s and Women’s National Collegiate Club Championships in the same academic year following the Huntsville Aquatic Center in Huntsville, Alabama (2021 Fall/2022 Spring) and the University of California-Santa Cruz (2015 Fall/2016 Spring).
The 16-team club championship tournament is the largest collegiate water polo championship in the nation. Seeds are determined by the order of finish by the divisions at the 2025 Women’s National Collegiate Club Championship hosted by Colby College on April 11-13.
The 16-team club championship tournament is the largest collegiate water polo championship in the nation as the champions from the Atlantic, Bay Area, Big Ten, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, New England, New York, North Atlantic, Northwest, Pacific Coast, Rocky Mountain, Sierra Pacific, Southeast, Southwest and Texas Divisions join the host Mules to decide which women’s collegiate club team is the best in the nation.
In the history of the championship, the University of Washington (2000), Michigan State University (2001, 2002, 2006), California Polytechnic State University (2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011), Fresno State University (2007), the University of California-Davis (2012, 2013, 2017, 2018), San Diego State University (2014), the University of California (2015, 2022), the University of California-Santa Barbara (2016, 2025), the University of Florida (2019) and the University of Michigan (2023, 2024) have previously claimed Women’s National Collegiate Club Championship titles.
A host team for the championship will be determined based on the results of the Mid-Atlantic Division Championship with the division champion earning the No. 10 position, while the No. 16 position will be decided based on which program finishes as the division runner-up/third and the availability of the squad(s) to compete.
A schedule for the championship is available by CLICKING HERE.
For fans attending the National Collegiate Club Championship, a three-day tournament pass ($35) or a one-day pass ($15) for the National Club Championship will be available at the door. All children 12 and under are free of charge. All tickets are exclusively available at the door as there will be no presale in advance of the championship.
For fans who are unable to make the trip to Carlisle for the championship, the CWPA will offer live-streaming of the weekend on a pay-per-view basis at CWPATV.com. Additional information will be released closer to the event.
About Carlisle: Located in Central Pennsylvania, Carlisle is the smaller principal city of the Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical area, which includes Cumberland and Dauphin and Perry counties in South Central Pennsylvania.
The town is home to the U.S. Army War College, located at Carlisle Barracks, which prepares high-level military personnel and civilians for strategic leadership responsibilities. The Carlisle Barracks ranks among the oldest U.S. Army installations and the most senior military educational institution in the United States Army. Carlisle Barracks is home of the United States Army Heritage and Education Center, an archives and museum complex open to the public. Carlisle is also home to Penn State Dickinson School of Law and Dickinson College. Dickinson College is also noted as it was the first college or university chartered after the United States was founded.
Carlisle lies southwest of the intersection of Interstate 76 (the Pennsylvania Turnpike) and Interstate 81, roughly 20 miles (32 km) west-southwest of Harrisburg. By road, it is approximately 80 mi (130 km) northwest of Baltimore and 124 mi (200 km) west-northwest of Philadelphia.
Two privately funded historical markers are located in Carlisle: one for the Hamilton Restaurant’s Hot-Chee Dog – a chili-cheese dog with a secret meat sauce – and another for the Old Town Pump, which provided fresh spring water to Carlisle and “eventually became the source of a legend that claimed anyone who drank from the pump would return to Carlisle no matter how far they roamed”.
For fans traveling to Carlisle, Harrisburg International Airport is serviced by Allegiant, American, Delta, United and Frontier airlines. Both Baltimore and Philadelphia are serviced by the majority of both international and domestic carriers .
Previous Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship Hosts (2000-to-Present)
2000 – University of Washington (King County Aquatic Center, Federal Way, Wash.)
2001 – University of Florida (Gainesville, Fla.)
2002 – California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)
2003 – Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas)
2004 – University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, Ind.)
2005 – Williams College (Williamstown, Mass.)
2006 – Miami University of Ohio (Oxford, Ohio)
2007 – University of Arizona (Tucson, Ariz.)
2008 – Ohio University (Athens, Ohio)
2009 – University of Florida (Gainesville, Fla.)
2010 – Southern Utah University (Cedar City, Utah)
2011 – Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, Ga.)
2012 – Oregon State University (Osborn Aquatic Center, Corvallis, Ore.)
2013 – University of California-San Diego (La Jolla, Calif.)
2014 – University of Utah (Kearns Oquirrh Park Fitness Center, Kearns, Utah)
2015 – University of California-Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, Calif.)
2016 – University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, Ind.)
2017 – Florida State University (Tallahassee, Fla.)
2018 – University of Arizona (Tucson, Ariz.)
2019 – University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa)
2020 – None – COVID-19
2021 – University of Alabama (Huntsville Aquatic Center, Huntsville, Ala.)
2022 – Oregon State University (Chehalem Aquatic & Fitness Center, Newberg, Ore.)
2023 – University of Utah (Kearns Oquirrh Park Fitness Center, Kearns, Utah)
2024 – University of Florida (Gainesville, Fla.)
2025 – Villanova University/Pennsylvania State University (Carlisle YMCA Aquatic Center, Carlisle, Pa.)
Previous Women’s National Collegiate Club Championship Hosts (2000-to-Present)
2000 – University of Arizona (Tucson, Ariz.)
2001 – Miami University of Ohio (Oxford, Ohio)
2002 – Emory University (Atlanta, Ga.)
2003 – Carthage College (Kenosha, Wisc.)
2004 – California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)
2005 – Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas)
2006 – Northwestern University (Evanston, Ill.)
2007 – Williams College (Williamstown, Mass.)
2008 – University of Oregon (Mt. Hood Aquatic Center, Gresham, Ore.)
2009 – University of California-Davis (Davis, Calif.)
2010 – University of Arizona (Tucson, Ariz.)
2011 – University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, Ind.)
2012 – Florida State University (Tallahassee, Fla.)
2013 – University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, Minn.)
2014 – The Ohio State University (SPIRE Institute, Geneva, Ohio)
2015 – Middlebury College (Middlebury, Vt.)
2016 – University of California-Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, Calif.)
2017 – University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
2018 – University of Washington (Mt. Hood Aquatic Center, Gresham, Ore.)
2019 – University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, Ind.)
2020 – None (COVID-19)
2021 – None (COVID-19)
2022 – Collegiate Water Polo Association (Huntsville Aquatic Center (Huntsville, Ala.)
2023 – University of California-Los Angeles (Los Angeles, Calif.)
2024 – Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas)
2025 – Colby College (Waterville, Maine)
Previous Men’s National Collegiate Club Champions (1993-to-Present)
1993 – Northwestern University def. University of Maryland
1994 – United States Military Academy def. University of Dayton
1995 – University of Dayton def. United States Military Academy
1996 – University of Michigan def. University of Arizona
1997 – Dartmouth College def. University of Colorado
1998 – University of Michigan def. Pennsylvania State University
1999 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of Richmond
2000 – Michigan State University def. University of Washington
2001 – California Polytechnic State University def. Villanova University
2002 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of Southern California
2003 – University of Michigan def. California Polytechnic State University
2004 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of Arizona
2005 – Grand Valley State University def. Michigan State University
2006 – Michigan State University def. Grand Valley State University
2007 – California Polytechnic State University def. Michigan State University
2008 – Michigan State University def. California Polytechnic State University
2009 – University of California-Los Angeles def. Florida International University
2010 – University of California-Los Angeles def. University of Texas
2011 – University of Southern California def. Yale University
2012 – University of Southern California def. University of California
2013 – University of California-Los Angeles def. Lindenwood University
2014 – Lindenwood University def. San Diego State University
2015 – Lindenwood University def. San Diego State University
2016 – Lindenwood University def. Long Beach State University
2017 – San Diego State University def. University of Texas
2018 – Lindenwood University def. University of Utah
2019 – Lindenwood University def. University of Southern California
2020 – No competition – COVID-19
2021 – Michigan State University def. University of California-San Diego
2022 – University of California-San Diego def. California Polytechnic State University
2023 – University of California-San Diego def.University of Florida
2024 – University of California-San Diego def. Cal Maritime Academy
2025 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of California-San Diego
Previous Women’s National Collegiate Club Champions (2000-to-Present)
2000 – University of Washington def. Michigan State University
2001 – Michigan State University def. University of Florida
2002 – Michigan State University def. California Polytechnic State University
2003 – California Polytechnic State University def. Michigan State University
2004 – California Polytechnic State University def. Dartmouth College
2005 – California Polytechnic State University def. Dartmouth College
2006 – Michigan State University def. University of Florida
2007 – Fresno State University def. California Polytechnic State University
2008 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of Oregon
2009 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of Notre Dame
2010 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of Michigan
2011 – California Polytechnic State University def. University of California-Davis
2012 – University of California-Davis def. California Polytechnic State University
2013 – University of California-Davis def. University of Central Florida
2014 – San Diego State University def. University of Michigan
2015 – University of California def. University of Notre Dame
2016 – University of California-Santa Barbara def. University of Michigan
2017 – University of California-Davis def. California Polytechnic State University
2018 – University of California-Davis def. California Polytechnic State University
2019 – University of Florida def. University of California-Davis
2020 – Season terminated – COVID-19
2021 – No competition – COVID-19
2022 – University of California def. University of California-Santa Barbara
2023 – University of Michigan def. University of California-Santa Barbara
2024 – University of Michigan def. University of California-Los Angeles
2025 – University of California-Santa Barbara def. University of Michigan
