Courtesy: Cal Athletics
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
SPIEKER AQUATICS COMPLEX | BERKELEY, CALIF.
SATURDAY, DEC. 3
NO. 1 CAL (21-2) VS. PACIFIC (22-6) | 2 P.M. PT
LIVE STREAM | LIVE STATS
NO. 2 UCLA (22-4) VS. USC (19-6) | 4 P.M. PT
LIVE STREAM | LIVE STATS
SUNDAY, DEC. 4
SEMIFINAL WINNERS, 3 P.M. PT
BEARS AND THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
Cal has the most NCAA championships in history with 15, the most recent title coming last season at UCLA. The Bears have made 32 NCAA appearances overall.
CAL THREE-PEATS AS MPSF REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS
The Bears won the MPSF regular season championship for the third season in a row, going 3-0 in conference play for the second consecutive season. Cal opened MPSF play with a 14-10 win over USC before outlasting UCLA 10-9 in overtime and then defeating Stanford 18-12.
PAPANIKOLAOU, EVERIST MAKE THREE-PEAT HISTORY
Junior center Nikolaos Papanikolaou and head coach Kirk Everist made history with MPSF’s postseason awards this year. Papanikolaou was named the conference Player of the Year for the third straight season, becoming just the second player in MPSF history to accomplish that feat. Everist, meanwhile, became the first coach in conference history to be named MPSF Coach of the Year three years in a row. Papanikolaou and Everist won ACWPC National Player of the Year and Coach of the Year honors last season as well.
BEARS LEAD ALL-MPSF FIRST TEAM
Cal had a conference-high four players named to the All-MPSF First Team – junior center Nikolaos Papanikolaou, senior attacker Jack Deely, junior goalie Adrian Weinberg and sophomore attacker Max Casabella. The Bears also placed sophomore attacker Roberto Valera on the second team while senior utility Marko Valecic and junior center Warren Loth earned honorable mention. Papanikolaou has secured All-MPSF First Team recognition all four years of his collegiate career.
PAPANIKOLAOU CLIMBS CAREER CHARTS
Junior center Nikolaos Papanikolaou became the sixth player in program history to record 200 career goals when he scored against Stanford during the third quarter in the semifinals of the MPSF Championships. Papanikolaou now has 201 goals and needs five more to pass his current head coach, Kirk Everist, for fifth place on Cal’s all-time scoring list.
EVERIST REACHES MILESTONE
Cal head coach Kirk Everist registered his 400th career win last season when the Bears defeated San Jose State at the Aggie Shootout. Now in his 21st season leading the Cal program, Everist has a career record of 434-129. He has led the Bears to five NCAA titles, most recently last season. He has been named MPSF Coach of the Year four times, including each of the past three seasons. He’s also been selected as the AWCPC National Coach of the Year on three occassions. Everist was a three-time All-American as a player for Cal and went on to play for Team USA twice in the Summer Olympics.