1976 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship
The 1976 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship was the eighth annual NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship to determine the national champion of NCAA men's college water polo. Tournament matches were played at the Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach, California during December 1976.[1]
 | |
| Dates | December 1976 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 8 |
| Champions | Stanford (1st title) |
| Runners-up | UCLA (5th title game) |
| Third place | UC Irvine |
| Fourth place | UC Santa Barbara |
| Matches played | 12 |
| Goals scored | 252 (21 per match) |
| Attendance | 3,050 (254 per match) |
| Top goal scorer(s) | Dave Breen, Arizona (17) |
| Best player | Chris Dorst, Stanford |
← 1975 1977 → | |
Stanford defeated UCLA in the final, 13–12, to win their first national title.
The leading scorer for the tournament was Dave Breen from Arizona (17 goals). Chris Dorst, from Stanford, was named the Most Outstanding Player. An All-Tournament Team, consisting of seven players, was also named.
Qualification
Since there has only ever been one single national championship for water polo, all NCAA men's water polo programs (whether from Division I, Division II, or Division III) were eligible. A total of 8 teams were invited to contest this championship.
| Team | Appearance | Previous |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona | 2nd | 1975 |
| Loyola–Chicago | 2nd | 1972 |
| Pittsburgh | 1st | Never |
| Stanford | 5th | 1975 |
| Texas A&M | 1st | Never |
| UC Irvine | 8th | 1975 |
| UC Santa Barbara | 6th | 1974 |
| UCLA | 8th | 1975 |
Bracket
- Site: Belmont Plaza Pool, Long Beach, California
| Fifth place | Consolation semifinals | First round | Championship semifinals | Championship | |||||||||||||||||||
| Stanford | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 14 | Stanford | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Loyola–Chicago | 6 | UC Santa Barbara | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| UC Santa Barbara | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loyola–Chicago | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 12 | Stanford | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 9 | UCLA | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| UCLA | 18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas A&M | 21 | UCLA | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Seventh place | Pittsburgh | 13 | UC Irvine | 9 | Third place | ||||||||||||||||||
| Loyola–Chicago | 12 | UC Irvine | 18 | UC Santa Barbara | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Pittsburgh | 11 | Pittsburgh | 4 | UC Irvine (2OT) | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||
All-tournament team
- Chris Dorst, Stanford (Most outstanding player)
- Rob Arnold, Stanford
- Rick Johannsen, Stanford
- Drew McDonald, Stanford
- Boyd Philpot, UC Irvine
- John Stephens, UCLA
- Joe Vargas, UCLA
See also
References
- "Men's Water Polo Championship Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved April 3, 2015.