1997 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship

1997 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship
Dates December 1997
Teams 4
Champions Pepperdine (1st title)
Runners-up USC (6th title game)
Matches played 4
Goals scored 65 (16.25 per match)
Attendance 927 (232 per match)
Top goal scorer(s) Jeremy Pope, Pepperdine (6)
Best player Alan Herrmann, Pepperdine
Merrill Moses, Pepperdine
Jeremy Pope, Pepperdine

The 1997 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship was the 29th annual tournament to determine the national champion of NCAA men's collegiate water polo. Tournament matches were played at the International Swimming Hall of Fame Aquatics Complex in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, during December 1997.[1]

Pepperdine defeated USC in the final, 8–7 (in two overtimes), to win their first national title. The Waves (25–3) were coached by Terry Schroeder.

The Most Outstanding Players of the tournament, all from Pepperdine, were Alan Herrmann, Merrill Moses, and Jeremy Pope. The All-Tournament Team comprised these three, along with four other players.

The tournament's leading scorer, with 6 goals, was Pope from Pepperdine.

Queens (NY) became the first team from outside the state of California to finish third place in an NCAA men's water polo tournament. The Knights defeated UC Davis in the third-place final, 5–3.

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 4 teams were invited to contest this championship.

Team Appearance Previous
UC Davis 4th 1996
Pepperdine 13th 1994
Queens (NY) 1st Never
USC 16th 1995

Bracket

  Semifinals     Championship
                 
   USC 14  
   Queens (NY) 6    
       USC 7
       Pepperdine (2OT) 8
   Pepperdine 13    
   UC Davis 8   Third Place
 
 Queens (NY) 5
   UC Davis 3

All-tournament team

See also

References

  1. "Men's Water Polo Championship Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
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