Trojans Take Top Spot For 2018 NCAA Tournament In Home Waters

The No. 1 USC women's water polo team, fresh off a victorious run to the 2018 MPSF Tournament title, will carry a 13-game win streak into the Trojans' 15th consecutive NCAA appearance. The host of this year's National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championship, USC will look to capture a sixth national championship when the Trojans set up camp as the top seeds at their own Uytengsu Aquatics Center for NCAA action running May 11-13.

With 2018 MPSF Coach of the Year Jovan Vavic at the helm for the 24th season, the Women of Troy are also armed with the 2018 MPSF Player of the Year in goalie Amanda Longan and MPSF Newcomer of the Year in Paige Hauschild to represent the impressive balance on the USC roster this season. Boasting a 23-1 overall record, USC grips its seventh straight and 20th overall 20-win season. Hauschild already boasts the second most goals ever scored by a USC true freshman in leading the Trojans with 62 goals so far. Longan and senior Brianna Daboub are USC's captains this year, and both have been climbing the Trojan stat ladders this season. Longan recently took over at No. 3 on USC's career saves chart, while Daboub has cracked the top-20 in career goals at Troy. Both two-time All-Americans, USC's respected captains are joined by fellow All-Americans Victória Chamorro and Maud Megens — goalie and scoring machine, respectively — to further reflect the well-rounded roster that USC exhibits this season. Led by Hauschild's 62 goals, USC has sophomores Denise Mammolito and Megens next on the scoresheet with 36 and 35 goals apiece, while seniors Daboub (33 goals) and Hayley McKelvey (31) fall in behind them in USC's top-five scorers to date. Defensively, USC has held opponents to just 4.8 goals-against per game with 17 games recorded with at least one shutout period.

USC has won five national championships in program history, with the first coming in 1999 before the NCAA sponsored women's water polo. In 2004, USC posted the first-ever undefeated season on the way to capturing the 2014 NCAA title. USC's third title came in 2010 — the last time the Trojans swept the MPSF coach, player and newcomer awards — in a championship won over Stanford. Three years later in 2013, the Trojans topped the Cardinal in tripe sudden-death overtime — the longest NCAA final in history — to claim a fourth national championship for USC. In another three years, USC was back on top once more, posting a second undefeated season en route to the 2016 NCAA Championship in another epic battle against Stanford. After a semifinal appearance last year, USC totes a 29-11 all-time record in NCAA tournament games since 2001.

This year's National Collegiate field includes seven automatic qualifiers from conference championships and three at-large teams. Six teams qualify directly to the championship field, and the remaining four teams will compete in Opening Round games, set for May 8 at USC. Those winners will advance to quarterfinal games set for May 11, with semifinals held May 12 and the NCAA Championship game set for 3 p.m. on May 13. All games will be played at USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center.

Earning automatic berths this year — along with MPSF champion USC — are Michigan (CWPA), Pacific (Golden Coast), Pomona-Pitzer (SCIAC), UC Irvine (Big West), UC San Diego (WWPA) and Wagner (MAAC). This year's at-large teams are California, Stanford and UCLA — all out of the MPSF.

USC (23-1) will open the 2018 NCAA Tournament at noon on May 11, playing the winner of May 8's 7 p.m. Opening Round game between UC San Diego (24-11) and Wagner (24-6). In the other Opening Round game on May 8, Pomona-Pitzer (21-10) will face UC Irvine (14.13) at 4:30 p.m. for the right to play No. 2 seed Stanford (18-3) in a 3:30 p.m. quarterfinal on May 11. The other May 11 quarterfinal matchups are set: No. 4 seed UCLA (22-7) takes on Pacific (18-7) at 1:45 p.m., while No. 3 seed California (19-5) faces Michigan (32-8) at 5:15 p.m.. Winners advance to May 12 semifinal rounds, with the 2018 national championship bout set for 3 p.m. on May 13.

For more information and for all-session tickets for the May 11-13 action, visit the NCAA Tournament Central page.

2018 NATIONAL COLLEGIATE WOMEN'S WATER POLO CHAMPIONSHIP
Host: USC (Uytengsu Aquatics Center | Los Angeles, Calif.)

OPENING ROUND GAMES (MAY 8)
4:30 p.m. — Pomona-Pitzer vs. UC Irvine
7 p.m. — UC San Diego vs. Wagner

QUARTERFINALS (MAY 11)
12 p.m. — Game 1: [1] USC vs. UC San Diego/Wagner winner
1:45 p.m. — Game 2: [4] UCLA vs. Pacific
3:30 p.m. — Game 3: [2] Stanford vs. Pomona-Pitzer/UC Irvine winner
5:15 p.m. — Game 4: [3] California vs. Michigan

SEMIFINALS (MAY 12)
3 p.m. — Game 1 & 2 winners
5 p.m. — Game 3 & 4 winners

CHAMPIONSHIP (MAY 13)
3 p.m. — Semifinal winners

Players Mentioned

Brianna Daboub

Paige Hauschild

Amanda Longan

Denise Mammolito

Hayley McKelvey

Maud Megens