BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Commissioner Dan Sharadin announced the McKendree University men’s water polo team was voted into full membership by the league’s Board of Directors into the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference (MAWPC)-West Region starting in the 2017 men’s water polo season.
The decision completes a year of transition for the Bearcats’ water polo programs as McKendree University Director of Athletics Chuck Brueggemann announced on January 26 that the men’s and women’s water polo teams, which debuted as club programs this year, would advance to National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) varsity status for the 2017-18 academic year.
In addition to the elevation of the current water polo programs to varsity status, McKendree will also sponsor a men’s water polo team at the club level. In all, there will be three water polo programs competing for the University in 2017-18.
“We are excited about the fact that our water polo teams will be moving into NCAA varsity competition next year, and for years to come,” said Brueggemann at the time of the announcment. “This move will allow our teams to continue to grow and will enable them to compete at the highest level, and we look forward to the impact this will have on McKendree University.”
The Bearcats’ varsity men’s program joins the MAWPC-West Region with Gannon University, Mercyhurst University, Washington & Jefferson College, Salem International University, LaSalle University, Monmouth College (Ill.) and Connecticut College. Per league rule, the top two teams from the West Region advance to the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference Championship against the group’s East teams (Bucknell University, Fordham University, George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University, United States Naval Academy, Wagner College) for the league title and a spot in the NCAA Championship field.
This past fall, the McKendree men’s water polo squad made its debut as a CWPA club program. The Bearcats won 12 matches in their inaugural season and earned a berth at the Men’s National Collegiate Championship hosted by the University of Notre Dame ultimately finishing in eighth place at the 16-team event.
In addition to the varsity team, McKendree’s club team will also remain in the CWPA as a member of the Missouri Valley Division.
In women’s water polo, McKendree submitted an application to the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) for membership. If accepted into the conference membership, the Bearcats would become the eighth member of the WWPA, joining schools from each coast. Current WWPA members include Gannon University, Mercyhurst University, California State University-East Bay, California State University-Monterey Bay, Sonoma State University and the University of California-San Diego. Earlier in January, Fresno Pacific University was introduced as the seventh WWPA member to begin competition in the conference in 2017-18.
All three McKendree water polo teams will host their home matches at the McKendree Metro Rec Plex, a multi-purpose facility that opened earlier this year in O’Fallon, Ill.
Information courtesy McKendree University Athletics Communications
