Courtesy: Collegiate Water Polo
BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — Stanford University and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges open the 2023 season at No. 1 on the national stage as the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) releases the 2023 Preseason Women’s Varsity National Top 25, Division III Top 10, CWPA Top Five and CWPA Division III Top Five Polls.
Stanford – which claimed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) title – and Pomona-Pitzer – which garnered the USA Water Polo Division III Collegiate Championship – in 2022 will open the new season as the favorites to repeat.
The University of Michigan and Austin College – which won the CWPA Division I and III Championships, respectively, last year will start the new campaign at No. 1 in the CWPA Top Five and CWPA Division III Top Five Polls.
Voted on by a panel of coaches from the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA), the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF), the Golden Coast Conference, the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the Big West Conference, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and the CWPA based on the cumulative results of the season, the polls are compiled and released on Wednesday during the season.
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY NATIONAL TOP 25 (PRESEASON)
Stanford University falls one point shy of rating as a unanimous No. 1 selection in the 2023 Women’s Varsity National Top 25 Preseason Poll.
The Cardinal (99 points) lead a Top 10 which is similar to the final ranking of 2022 as the University of Southern California (97 points) remains at No. 2, while the University of California-Los Angeles (90 points) and the University of California (90 points) are tied at No. 3.
The University of California-Irvine (82 points), the University of Hawaii (81 points), the University of Michigan (73 points), Fresno State University (69 points), Long Beach State University (68 points) and Arizona State University (64 points) rank at No. 5-to-10, respectively.
The University of California-San Diego (60 points) and the University of California-Davis (57 points) rate at No. 11 and 12 with Indiana University (46 points) and San Jose State University (46 points) tied at No. 13.
Wagner College (44 points) and Harvard University (35 points) attain the No. 15 and 16 positions with Princeton University (34 points) and University of the Pacific (34 points) squared at No. 17.
The University of California-Santa Barbara (33 points), Loyola Marymount University (32 points), Long Island University (18 points), San Diego State University (16 points), California State University-Northridge (12 points), Brown University (10 points) and Marist College (4 points) compete the Top 25 prior to the start of competition this upcoming weekend.
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY TOP 25 (PRESEASON) |
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| Rank | Team | Final 2022 Poll |
Points |
| 1 | Stanford University | 1 | 99 |
| 2 | University of Southern California | 2 | 97 |
| 3 (T) | University of California-Los Angeles | 4 | 90 |
| 3 (T) | University of California | 3 | 90 |
| 5 | University of California-Irvine | 5 | 82 |
| 6 | University of Hawaii | 6 | 81 |
| 7 | University of Michigan | 7 | 73 |
| 8 | Fresno State University | 8 | 69 |
| 9 | Long Beach State University | 9 | 68 |
| 10 | Arizona State University | 10 | 64 |
| 11 | University of California-San Diego | 11 | 60 |
| 12 | University of California-Davis | 12 | 57 |
| 13 (T) | Indiana University | 14 | 46 |
| 13 (T) | San Jose State University | 15 | 46 |
| 15 | Wagner College | 13 | 44 |
| 16 | Harvard University | 18 (T) | 35 |
| 17 (T) | Princeton University | 20 | 34 |
| 17 (T) | University of the Pacific | 17 | 34 |
| 19 | University of California-Santa Barbara | 18 (T) | 33 |
| 20 | Loyola Marymount University | 16 | 32 |
| 21 | Long Island University | 23 | 18 |
| 22 | San Diego State University | 21 | 16 |
| 23 | California State University-Northridge | 24 | 12 |
| 24 | Brown University | 22 | 10 |
| 25 | Marist College | 25 | 4 |
| RV | California Baptist University | NR | 2 |
| RV | Iona University | NR | 1 |
| RV | Saint Francis University | NR | 1 |
| RV | Azusa Pacific University | NR | 1 |
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY DIVISION III TOP 10 (PRESEASON)
Pomona-Pitzer Colleges starts the 2023 season at No. 1 in the Women’s Varsity Division III Top 10 Preseason Poll.
Pomona-Pitzer (100 points) is a unanimous top selection with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (91 points) coming in at No. 2. Whittier College (89 points) and California Lutheran University (85 points) stand at No. 3 and 4, while Chapman University (76 points) and the University of Redlands (76 points) are deadlocked at No. 5.
The University of La Verne (67 points) and Occidental College (67 points) share the No. 7 position with Austin College (61 points) and Augustana College (52 points) rounding out the Top 10.
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY DIVISION III TOP 10 (PRESEASON) |
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| Rank | Team | 2022 Final Poll |
Points |
| 1 | Pomona-Pitzer Colleges | 1 | 100 |
| 2 | Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges | 3 | 91 |
| 3 | Whittier College | 2 | 89 |
| 4 | California Lutheran University | 4 | 85 |
| 5 (T) | Chapman University | 7 | 76 |
| 5 (T) | University of Redlands | 8 | 76 |
| 7 (T) | University of La Verne | 6 | 67 |
| 7 (T) | Occidental College | 10 | 67 |
| 9 | Austin College | 5 | 61 |
| 10 | Augustana College | 9 | 52 |
| RV | Macalester College | NR | 11 |
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY COLLEGIATE WATER POLO ASSOCIATION TOP 5 (PRESEASON)
Defending Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Champion the University of Michigan is favored to capture another title in 2023 as the Wolverines acquire the No. 1 spot in the 2023 CWPA Division I Top Five Preseason Poll.
The 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022 league champion, Michigan (96 points) holds a narrow one-point lead over 2022 CWPA Championship runner-up Harvard University (95 points) and a three-point advantage compared to No. 3 Princeton University (93 points). The last time a preseason favorite held a lead of two points or less was in 2017 when Michigan topped Princeton by a 97-to-95 margin. Further, the last time a lead was one-point in the preseason poll came in 2016 when Indiana University topped both Michigan and Princeton by 94-to-93 totals.
Brown University (66 points) and Saint Francis University (66 points) wrap-up the Top Five as the Bears and Red Flash are tied at No. 4.
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY COLLEGIATE WATER POLO ASSOCIATION TOP 5 (PRESEASON) |
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| Rank | Team | Final 2022 Poll |
Points |
| 1 | University of Michigan | 1 | 96 |
| 2 | Harvard University | 2 | 95 |
| 3 | Princeton University | 3 | 93 |
| 4 (T) | Brown University | 4 | 66 |
| 4 (T) | Saint Francis University | 5 | 66 |
| RV | Bucknell University | RV | 34 |
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY COLLEGIATE WATER POLO ASSOCIATION DIVISION III TOP 5 (WEEK 13)
2021 and 2022 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III champion Austin College is the top-ranked program in the 2023 CWPA Division III Top Five Preseason Poll.
The Kangaroos (97 points) achieve preseason favorite status by a single point as 2022 CWPA Championship runner-up Augustana College (96 points) is nipping on Austin’s heels at No. 2.
Macalester College (92 points) comes in at No. 3 with Washington & Jefferson College (66 points) and Connecticut College (65 points) concluding the preseason rankings.
2023 WOMEN’S VARSITY COLLEGIATE WATER POLO ASSOCIATION DIVISION III TOP 5 (PRESEASON) |
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| Rank | Team | Final 2022 Poll |
Points |
| 1 | Austin College | 1 | 97 |
| 2 | Augustana College | 2 | 96 |
| 3 | Macalester College | 3 | 92 |
| 4 | Washington & Jefferson College | RV | 66 |
| 5 | Connecticut College | NR | 65 |
| RV | Grove City College | 5 | 34 |