L.A. Bound for NCAA Championship
5/10/2016 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
May 10, 2016
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• Watch: Sights Set on NCAA Championship 
THIS WEEK
Friday, May 13 -- vs. No. 6 Arizona State (Los Angeles, Calif.), 5:15 p.m. PDT
Live Video | Live Stats
• Game Day Information: Tournament Central | Spieker Aquatics Center | Tickets
WHAT IS HAPPENING
The No. 4-ranked University of Michigan water polo team (29-6) will make its sixth NCAA Championship appearance and travel to Los Angeles to play May 13-15 at UCLA's Spieker Aquatic Center, starting with a game against No. 6 Arizona State on Friday (May 13) at 5:15 p.m. PDT.
THE TEAMS
• No. 1 USC (23-0, 6-0 MPSF) - Only undefeated team in the country, defeated Stanford, 8-5, in the MPSF championship game
• No. 2 Stanford (21-5, 4-2 MPSF) - Won last two NCAA titles, three of five losses came to USC
• No. 3 UCLA (24-4, 5-1 CWPA) - Three of four losses came to USC, played in last year's national championship game
• No. 4 Michigan (29-6, 7-0 CWPA) - Defeated No. 14 Indiana, 9-2, to win its sixth CWPA championship and an automatic bid to NCAAs
• No. 6 Arizona State (19-7, 3-3 MPSF) - Second NCAA tourney appearance in school history, defeated Michigan 8-5 in Tempe on March 19
• No. 7 UCSB (18-12, 3-2 Big West) - Earned the Big West championship with an 11-5 win over Hawaii to lock in NCAA Championship bid
• No. 10 UCSD (26-9, 3-0 WWPA) - Defeated Cal State East Bay, 9-5, for the WWPA championship, plays Whittier in the play-in game on Tuesday (May 10)
• No. 13 San Diego State (17-16, 7-0 Golden Coast) - Won 10-9 in sudden-victory overtime against Pacific to take the Golden Coast championship, plays Wagner in the play-in game on Tuesday (May 10)
• No. 18 Wagner (29-9, 12-0 MAAC) - Has 14 straight wins, including an 8-5 victory over Marist in the MAAC championship, plays San Diego State in the play-in game on Tuesday (May 10)
• Whittier (26-7, 11-0 SCIAC) - Recorded 12 straight wins -- capped with a 17-12 victory over La Verne, plays UCSD in the play-in game on Tuesday (May 10)
THINGS TO KNOW
• All-session and Sunday tickets are sold out. Deck tickets for Friday and Saturday are $40, while general-admission tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for youth.
• Michigan won its sixth CWPA championship (2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2016) with a 9-2 victory over No. 14 Indiana. It is the largest margin of victory in CWPA Championship final history.
• U-M will play in Los Angeles for just the fourth time in school history, having played LMU in 2007, at the LMU Zuno Invitational last year and at USC in its first NCAA Tournament in 2002.
• The highest finish for Michigan at the NCAA tournament was fifth place in 2009. The Wolverines have never finished worse than sixth place but have also never won the first game in the tournament.
• The first-round game against No. 6 Arizona State will be a rematch from earlier this season as the Sun Devils claimed an 8-5 victory in their home pool on March 19. The two teams also played in the Collegiate Cup in November with the Wolverines winning 6-4.
• Michigan climbed to a tie for fourth in the national rankings last week, marking the highest ranking in program history. The previous best was No. 5 for five weeks this year and three straight weeks in 2010.
• Michigan's 29 victories are the program's most since a 32-5 season in 2011.
• Seniors Julia Campbell (communication studies), Emily Sejna (communication studies) and Kelly Martin (business administration) all have graduated from the University of Michigan. Senior Ali Thomason will continue to take classes towards a degree in neuroscience while doing some medical research this summer. She is expected to graduate in the fall.
Communications Contact: Ben Blevins
