Michigan Matched with No. 3 Seed California in NCAA Tournament Bracket
4/25/2022 8:05:00 PM | Water Polo
• NCAA Bracket | Tickets | Tournament Central
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- After earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as the CWPA champion, the University of Michigan water polo team learned during the NCAA Selection Show on Monday (April 25) that it will face No. 3 seed California in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals on Friday, May 6, at 6 p.m.
U-M will make its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and 11th in program history. Michigan is the host for this year's championship, which will take place at Canham Natatorium in Ann Arbor, May 6-8.
Michigan and California faced each other twice during the 2022 campaign, with the Wolverines dropping both games. Michigan dropped its 2022 season opener to Cal, 12-8, at the ASU Cross Conference Challenge, and the teams met for a second time on March 25 at the Wolverines' home pool in Ann Arbor, where the Golden Bears took the game by a 13-8 score. Michigan is 2-15 all time against California with its most recent win coming during the 2020 season.
"We're excited," said head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi. "I feel like the body of work that we did throughout the season merited being the sixth seed. I'm excited to play Cal; we have faced them before here at Michigan so we know how we match up and what the feel of the game will be like. It gives us an opportunity to come back and correct some of the things that we did earlier in the season. One game, one day, anything can happen."
The Wolverines will enter the NCAA Tournament with a 26-8 overall record. The team defeated No. 17 Harvard, 10-4, in the CWPA Championship game and went 12-0 in conference play during the regular season. U-M has an all-time record of 6-15 in its NCAA Tournament history. Â
Michigan is led by the CWPA Most Valuable Player of the Year, Maddy Steere, and the CWPA Tournament Most Valuable Player, Maddie O'Reilly. O'Reilly led the CWPA in goals (72), assists (67) and points (139), while Steere led the CWPA in field blocks (16) and finished second in goals (50), assists (33) and points(83).
Tickets for the championship are on sale now. All-session tickets are $50 and single-session tickets are $20. Tickets may be purchased online at MGoBlue.com/tickets, by phone (734-764-0247 or 1-866-296-6849) or in person at the U-M Ticket Office (1000 S. State St.). All tickets will be delivered electronically to display on a phone for entry.
