The Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) is a single sport intercollegiate

college athletic conference In college athletics in the United States, institutions typically join in conferences for regular play under different governing bodies. Varsity sports There are several national and regional associations governing the varsity teams of colleges ...

sponsoring men's and women's

water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...

. The WWPA is affiliated with the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

, and includes 15 member institutions, mostly in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, with one institution each in

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, and

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

and two in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

. The league has eight teams in its men's league and nine in its women's league, with only Fresno Pacific and

UC San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is t ...

fielding teams for both sexes in the WWPA. The three easternmost schools, Gannon, Mercyhurst, and Salem, also field teams for both men and women, but only the women's teams are in the WWPA, with the men's teams instead playing in the

Collegiate Water Polo Association The Collegiate Water Polo Association is a conference of colleges and universities in the Eastern United States that sponsor 19 men's teams and 17 women's teams that compete in varsity water polo. The winners of the conference tournaments earn one ...

. The WWPA members play a regular season of conference and non-conference games, followed by a championship tournament at the conclusion of both the men's and women's seasons, with the winner earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAAs.

Members

NCAA water polo is a fall sport for men and a spring sport for women. For women's members, the year of joining is the calendar year before the first season of competition. For men's members, the year of departure is the calendar year after the final season of competition. Departing members are highlighted in pink. All four departing men's members will leave in 2023 when the West Coast Conference, full-time home to Loyola Marymount and Santa Clara, begins sponsoring men's water polo.

Members

Men's teams

Women's teams

Former members

References

External links