University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Photo by: Robert Edwards
Women's Water Polo Awarded No. 2 Seed in NCAA Championship
April 13, 2026 | Women's Water Polo
INDIANAPOLIS โ UCLA earned an at-large berth into the 2026 National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championship, it was announced Monday by the NCAA Women's Water Polo Committee. The Bruins (20-4) were awarded the tournament's No. 2 seed and face No. 7 seed Harvard (26-3) in the first round.
UC San Diego hosts the single-elimination tournament at Canyonview Pool in La Jolla, Calif. An opening-round game will be contested Wednesday, April 22 between Wagner (15-12) and Concordia University Irvine (20-9) to determine the eight-team bracket's final member. First-round matchups are scheduled for Friday, April 24. UCLA plays Harvard at 4 p.m. PT.
MPSF champion and top-seeded Stanford (14-1) was selected as the No. 1 seed and meets Wagner or Concordia at 12 p.m. Game 2 features a showdown between fourth-seeded California (14-7) and No. 5 seed Hawai'i (16-5) at 2 p.m. Following UCLA's first-round game, third-seeded USC (22-3) takes on No. 6 seed LMU (23-4) at 6 p.m. The Saturday, April 25 semifinals are at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Conferences receiving automatic qualification include the Big West Conference (Hawai'i), Collegiate Water Polo Association (Harvard), Golden Coast Conference (LMU), Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (Wagner), Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (Stanford) and the Western Water Polo Association (Concordia). The remaining three teams were selected at-large without geographical restrictions (UCLA, USC, and California).
First-round and semifinal contests will be streamed live on NCAA.com. The national championship game will take place Sunday, April 26 at a time to be determined, with ESPNU providing live television coverage.
This is UCLA's 24th appearance in the NC Women's Water Polo Championship and 30th overall championship appearance. The Bruins have won 12 national titles, most recently going undefeated en route to the crown in 2024. UCLA enters the 2026 tournament with an all-time record of 46-15 (.754) in NCAA games. Last year, the Bruins posted an 11-8 win versus LMU before falling to USC 15-13 in the semifinals.
UC San Diego hosts the single-elimination tournament at Canyonview Pool in La Jolla, Calif. An opening-round game will be contested Wednesday, April 22 between Wagner (15-12) and Concordia University Irvine (20-9) to determine the eight-team bracket's final member. First-round matchups are scheduled for Friday, April 24. UCLA plays Harvard at 4 p.m. PT.
MPSF champion and top-seeded Stanford (14-1) was selected as the No. 1 seed and meets Wagner or Concordia at 12 p.m. Game 2 features a showdown between fourth-seeded California (14-7) and No. 5 seed Hawai'i (16-5) at 2 p.m. Following UCLA's first-round game, third-seeded USC (22-3) takes on No. 6 seed LMU (23-4) at 6 p.m. The Saturday, April 25 semifinals are at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Conferences receiving automatic qualification include the Big West Conference (Hawai'i), Collegiate Water Polo Association (Harvard), Golden Coast Conference (LMU), Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (Wagner), Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (Stanford) and the Western Water Polo Association (Concordia). The remaining three teams were selected at-large without geographical restrictions (UCLA, USC, and California).
First-round and semifinal contests will be streamed live on NCAA.com. The national championship game will take place Sunday, April 26 at a time to be determined, with ESPNU providing live television coverage.
This is UCLA's 24th appearance in the NC Women's Water Polo Championship and 30th overall championship appearance. The Bruins have won 12 national titles, most recently going undefeated en route to the crown in 2024. UCLA enters the 2026 tournament with an all-time record of 46-15 (.754) in NCAA games. Last year, the Bruins posted an 11-8 win versus LMU before falling to USC 15-13 in the semifinals.
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