BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana head coach Barry King and the IU Water Polo coaching staff has announced their tentative 2016 regular season schedule. The Hoosiers will travel for seven invitational weekends in 2016, and they’ll host two weekends of action at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center.
The Hoosiers will take the pool for their first competition on Saturday, January 23 at the ASU Invite in Tempe, Ariz. Last season, the Hoosiers faced tough competition at Arizona State, emerging with a 2-2 weekend record and hard-fought contests against top-ranked teams.
Indiana will follow the ASU Invite with an east coast invitational at Brown University from February 6-7. After that, the Hoosiers will head west for a weekend at UC San Diego from February 13-14.
On Saturday, March 6, Indiana returns to the east coast for a two-day outing at Harvard University. They’ll follow that with a return to the Aztec Invite at San Diego State University on Saturday, March 13. The Hoosiers went 3-1 last season at the Aztec Invite, including thrilling wins against No. 12 San Diego State and No. 20 UC San Diego.
The Hoosiers will host their first home games of the season from Friday, March 18 through Sunday, March 20. The Hoosiers open their home schedule with a clash against Sonoma State at 7:00 pm ET. On Saturday, March 19, Indiana will take on CSU East Bay at 9:00 am ET, followed by a game against Mercyhurst at 1:00 pm ET. The Hoosiers will close the weekend with a game against Gannon on Sunday, March 20 at 10:00 am ET.
The Hoosier faithful will circle Saturday, April 2 on their calendars, as IU Water Polo will host the annual regular season showdown between the Hoosiers and the Michigan Wolverines. This matchup is one of the fiercest rivalries for the Hoosiers across all 24 of IU’s sports, and is sure to be a thriller once again. The Hoosiers and Wolverines met three times last season. All three games were won by one score, and two of the games reached overtime.
Following the game against Michigan, the Hoosiers will gear up for two weekends of CWPA competition, which will be crucial in determining their postseason seeding. The first weekend of CWPA action will begin Saturday, April 9 in Ann Arbor, Mich. On Saturday, April 16, the Hoosiers will return to the site of the 2015 CWPA Championship, Princeton University, for their final weekend of the regular season.
The 2016 CWPA Championship will begin on Friday, April 29 at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. The CWPA Championship game will take place on Sunday, May 1.
The 2016 NCAA Water Polo Championship begins on Friday, May 13, and will conclude with the championship game on Sunday, May 15 at the Spieker Aquatics Complex in Los Angeles, Calif. The winner of the 2016 CWPA Championship will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship.
INDIANA UNIVERSITY WATER POLO
2016 Season Schedule
All times Eastern. Majority of invitational opponents are TBD.
Saturday, January 23 – Sunday, January 24
ASU Invite • Arizona State University • Tempe, Ariz.
Saturday, February 6 – Sunday, February 7
Bruno Classic • Brown University • Providence, R.I.
Saturday, February 13 – Sunday, February 14
Triton Invitational • UC San Diego • San Diego, Calif.
Saturday, March 5 – Sunday, March 6
Harvard University • Cambridge, Mass.
Saturday, March 12 – Sunday, March 13
Aztec Invite • San Diego State University • San Diego, Calif.
Friday, March 18
7:00 pm ET • Indiana vs. Sonoma State • Bloomington, Ind.
Saturday, March 19
9:00 am ET • Indiana vs. CSU East Bay • Bloomington, Ind.
10:20 am ET • Sonoma State vs. Gannon • Bloomington, Ind.
1:00 pm ET • Indiana vs. Mercyhurst • Bloomington, Ind.
5:00 pm ET • CSU East Bay vs. Gannon • Bloomington, Ind.
6:20 pm ET • Sonoma State vs. Mercyhurst
Sunday, March 20
10:00 am ET • Indiana vs. Gannon • Bloomington, Ind.
11:20 am ET • CSU East Bay vs. Mercyhurst • Bloomington, Ind.
Saturday, April 2
Indiana vs. Michigan • Bloomington, Ind. • Time TBA
Saturday, April 9 – Sunday, April 10
CWPA Weekend • University of Michigan • Ann Arbor, Mich.
Saturday, April 16 – Sunday April 17
CWPA Weekend • Princeton University • Princeton, N.J.
2016 CWPA Championship
Friday, April 29 – Sunday, May 1 • Harvard University • Cambridge, Mass.
2016 NCAA Water Polo Championship
Friday, May 13 – Sunday, May 15 • University of California Los Angeles • Los Angeles, Calif.
Swimming news courtesy of Indiana Water Polo.