BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — Matthew Haygood (Jr., Chino Hills, Calif./Chino Hills) of McKendree University registered 13 goals, five assists, seven drawn exclusions and three steals during a 3-0 weekend for the Bearcats to claim the Winter 2021 Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference (MAWPC)-West Championship at the Hallman Aquatics Center in Erie. For his Most Valuable Player performance at the championship tournament, Haygood is named the March 1 MAWPC Player of the Week.
Haygood, who picks up his inaugural solo POW award after previously sharing the October 14 laurel in 2019 with La Salle University’s Luke Waechter and being named co-Player of the Week with teammate Nico Rodriguez (Jr., Bogota, Colombia/Oviedo) on February 15 earlier this season, anchored the Bearcats to the program’s second MAWPC-West crown.
He opened the weekend with four goals in a 26-9 defeat of Washington & Jefferson College followed by three more in a 15-9 semifinal victory over Mercyhurst University on Saturday, February 27.
In the title game on Sunday, February 28, he scored six times as McKendree topped defending MAWPC-West Champion Gannon University by a 21-8 score.
The 2018 MAWPC-Rookie of the Tournament for helping the Bearcats claim their first MAWPC-West title, Haygood has led McKendree to the MAWPC-West Championship title game the past three seasons (2018, 2019, Winter 2021).
March 1 Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference Player of the Week Honor Roll: Vladimir Mickic (Gannon University); Andras Levai (George Washington University); Ty Williams (La Salle University); Mathieu Davis (Mercyhurst University); Jason O’Donnell (Mount St. Mary’s University); Ivan Zivojinovic (Salem University); Bobby Lee (United States Naval Academy); Will Kitsch (Washington & Jefferson College)
