BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — The University of California-Los Angeles remains at No. 1 in the nation, while Johns Hopkins University and Princeton University remain firmly in control of the Division III and league rankings, respectively, as the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) releases the 2015 Men’s Varsity Week 3/September 23 National Top 20, Division III Top 10 and Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Top 10 Polls.
Following a standout performance at the Kap7 NorCal Invitational hosted by Stanford University over the weekend, UCLA returns to the ranks of a unanimous No. 1 selection. In Division III, the Blue Jays of Johns Hopkins, who ranked at No. 1 in the Week 1 Poll and were tied with Whittier College last week, reacquire sole possession of the top spot. Finally, the Tigers of Princeton hold on at No. 1 in the CWPA but lose its position as a unanimous top selection.
Voted on by a panel of coaches from the CWPA, Western Water Polo Association (WWPA), MPSF, Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the polls will be compiled and released on Wednesday during each week of the season through the week following the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championship.
2015 Men’s Varsity National Top 20 (Week 3/September 23)
The 2014 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Champion Bruins of theUniversity of California-Los Angeles retain the No. 1 position in the 2015 Week 3/September 23 National Top 20 Poll following a championship performance at the 2015 Kap7 NorCal Invitational hosted by Stanford University.
Similar to the Week 1 Poll, the Bruins (100 points) are once again a consensus top pick after tallying 99 points last week.
The results of the NorCal Invitational significantly impact this week’s Top 20 as tournament runner-up Stanford (95 points) jumps two slots to take over in the runner-up position. The University of Southern California (90 points) and the University of California (85 points), which stood at No. 2 and 3 last week, drop back to No. 3 and 4.
The University of the Pacific (81 points), the University of California-Santa Barbara (75 points), Long Beach State University (70 points), the University of California-Irvine (62 points) and Pepperdine University (60 points) remain locks at No. 5-to-9, while the University of California-Davis (55 points) breaks out of a tie at No. 10 from last week to claim sole possession of the final position in an all-California Top 10.
Two East Coast teams are lurking just outside the Top 10 as Princeton University (49 points) and Brown University (44 points) both inch up one spot to take over at No. 11 and 12.
The University of California-San Diego (40 points) slides back to No. 13 after being tied at No. 10 last week, while theUnited States Air Force Academy (34 points) and Bucknell University (32 points) rise to No. 14 and 15.
The United States Naval Academy (26 points), Johns Hopkins University (15 points), Harvard University (12 points),San Jose State University (7 points) and Whittier College (8 points) round out the Top 20.
Outside the Top 20, seven schools received one or more votes as a total of 27 institutions garnered notice in the Week 2 poll.
2015 Varsity Top 20 (Week 3/September 23) |
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| Rank | Team | Week 2 Poll | Points |
| 1 | University of California-Los Angeles | 1 | 100 |
| 2 | Stanford University | 4 | 95 |
| 3 | University of Southern California | 2 | 90 |
| 4 | University of California | 3 | 85 |
| 5 | University of the Pacific | 5 | 81 |
| 6 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 6 | 75 |
| 7 | Long Beach State University | 7 | 70 |
| 8 | University of California-Irvine | 8 | 65 |
| 9 | Pepperdine University | 9 | 60 |
| 10 | University of California-Davis | 10 (T) | 55 |
| 11 | Princeton University | 12 | 49 |
| 12 | Brown University | 13 (T) | 44 |
| 13 | University of California-San Diego | 10 (T) | 40 |
| 14 | United States Air Force Academy | 16 | 34 |
| 15 | Bucknell University | 17 | 32 |
| 16 | United States Naval Academy | 15 | 26 |
| 17 | Johns Hopkins University | 18 | 15 |
| 18 | Harvard University | RV | 12 |
| 19 | San Jose State University | 13 (T) | 7 |
| 20 | Whittier College | 19 | 6 |
| RV | St. Francis College Brooklyn | RV | 3 |
| RV | California Baptist University | 20 (T) | 3 |
| RV | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 20 (T) | 2 |
| RV | Chapman University | NR | 1 |
| RV | Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges | RV | 1 |
| RV | University of Redlands | NR | 1 |
| RV | Loyola Marymount University | RV | 1 |
2015 Men’s Varsity Division III Top 10 (Week 3/September 23)
Johns Hopkins University (98 points) reacquires sole possession of the No. 1 position in the ranks of Division III teams as the squad breaks out of a tie with Whittier College to top the Week 3/September 23 National Division III Top 10 Poll.
JHU, which dislodged the reigning Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) champion Poets for the No. 1 slot in the Week 1 Poll, and Whittier, which led the Preseason voting before coming back to tie JHU last week, stand at No. 1 and 2 again.
In a battle of the East Coast-vs.-the West Coast with the teams not guaranteed to meet unless the programs advance to the title game of the Gary Troyer Tournament on October 2-3 in Claremont, Calif., the question of which one is best continues to be debated among the pollsters.
The change at the top of the poll is by far not the last adjustment after three weeks of action as Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (83 points) and the University of Redlands (82 points) both move up one place to take over at No. 3 and 4, respectively.
Pomona-Pitzer Colleges (78 points), which was tied with Redlands at No. 5 last week, stays in the middle of the pack and picks up a new equal as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (78 points) slides back after rating at No. 3 in the Week 2 balloting.
Chapman University (76 points), California Lutheran University (54 points), the University of La Verne (49 points) andWashington & Jefferson College (35 points) round out the Top 10.
Occidental College (34 points) and Connecticut College (11 points) also received votes.
2015 Varsity Division III Top 10 (Week 3/September 23) |
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| Rank | Team | Week 2 Poll | Points |
| 1 | Johns Hopkins University | 1 (T) | 98 |
| 2 | Whittier College | 1 (T) | 97 |
| 3 | Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges | 4 | 83 |
| 4 | University of Redlands | 5 (T) | 82 |
| 5 (T) | Pomona-Pitzer Colleges | 5 (T) | 78 |
| 5 (T) | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 3 | 78 |
| 7 | Chapman University | 8 | 76 |
| 8 | California Lutheran University | 9 | 54 |
| 9 | University of La Verne | 7 | 49 |
| 10 | Washington & Jefferson College | RV | 35 |
| RV | Occidental College | 10 | 34 |
| RV | Connecticut College | RV | 11 |
2015 Men’s Varsity CWPA Top 10 (Week 3/September 23)
The Tigers of Princeton University maintain their position as the top team in the Week3/September 23 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Top 10 Poll.
Princeton (99 points), which falls from the ranks of being a unanimous No. 1 selection, holds a three point lead over Bucknell University (96 points). The Bison, who break out a tie at No. 2 with the United States Naval Academy close to within striking distance of the Tigers, while reigning CWPA Champion Brown University (90 points) improves to No. 3 after standing at No. 4 a week ago.
Navy (81 points) and Johns Hopkins University (81 points) fall and rise, respectively, into a tie at No. 5 with Harvard University (78 points) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(70 points) trading the No. 6 and 7 berths.
Fordham University (62 points) and St. Francis College Brooklyn are tied at No. 8, with Mercyhurst University (33 points) breaking into the Top 10 for the final position.
George Washington University (12 points) and Washington & Jefferson College (11 points) also received votes.
2015 Varsity CWPA Top 10 (Week 3/September 23) |
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| Rank | Team | Week 2 Poll | Points |
| 1 | Princeton University | 1 | 99 |
| 2 | Bucknell University | 2 (T) | 96 |
| 3 | Brown University | 4 | 90 |
| 4 (T) | Johns Hopkins University | 5 | 81 |
| 4 (T) | United States Naval Academy | 2 (T) | 81 |
| 6 | Harvard University | 7 | 78 |
| 7 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 6 | 70 |
| 8 (T) | Fordham University | 8 | 62 |
| 8 (T) | St. Francis College Brooklyn | 9 | 62 |
| 10 | Mercyhurst University | RV | 33 |
| RV | George Washington University | 10 | 12 |
| RV | Washington & Jefferson College | RV | 11 |
Swimming news courtesy of Collegiate Water Polo Association.