Big Congrats to the USC Men's Water Polo team!

They are the only school win the NCAA Title FOUR years in a row!

Absolutely HUGE!

FOUR-peat!!

FIGHT ON!

The top seeded USC men's water polo capped off yet another successful season Sunday with a heart-thumping 12-10 overtime win over No. 2 seed California in the NCAA championship game. 

The victory marks the Trojans' third consecutive national title, and sixth overall under the watch of head coach Jovan Vavic.

Congratulations to Vavic and the entire program, which will return every single player with the exception of redshirt junior Mason Hawthorne who graduates in May.

To say the future is bright, may be an understatement. All is well in Troy, at least in the pool.

FIGHT ON!

Well, according to the NCAA's 67-page report, we're not going to be allowed to solely discuss football here at Conquest Chronicles. Instead, Paul Dee and company are asking us to spread the love around and give some attention to the other sports on campus. Begrudgingly, we're going to be following orders for once, and take a peak at some of the other fall sports such as soccer, volleyball, and even water polo. For our first preview series, we'll preview the 2010 USC men's water polo team.

Why you should care: The Trojans are coming off two of their best seasons in recent history, including an undefeated campaign in 2008, and are looking to win their third consecutive national championship in 2010. In doing they would become the first school since Cal in 1992 to "three-peat" as NCAA champions. According to head coach Jovan Vavic, another title is still in fact a realistic goal for the program despite the loss of ten seniors, which includes J.W. Krumpholz who was the 2008 and 2009 recipient of the Cutino Award - awarded to the best overall player in the country.

How to follow along: Since collegiate water polo games are not televised locally on Fox Sports West like some other non-revenue sports (track/field and volleyball), the only way to watch the team is through a paid subscription to USC Trojans All-Access or attend the games in person at McDonald's Swim Stadium, which is situated on campus right next to Howard Jones Field. (see: schedule if interested). Additionally, USCTrojans.com will often feature game previews and recaps, while the Daily Trojan will also feature similar reports. (note: I'll also be serving as one of the team's beat writers this fall so you better read them!)

Some things you need to know: In case you plan on keeping tabs on the team this season, here are a few things of note you should keep in mind.

A.) There is no Pac-10. Much like gymnastics and volleyball, USC does not participate in the Pac-10. Instead teams such as 'SC, Stanford, and UCLA, all participate in a league known as the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF). Other members include Cal, Long Beach State, Pacific, Pepperdine, UC Irvine, and UC Santa Barbara. 

B.) There might not be a better coach nationally than Jovan Vavic. It can be relatively challenging to evaluate polo coaches, but based on his track record, there is little questioning the success Vavic has had at USC. Since arriving at USC in the mid-1990s, Vavic, who also coaches the women's team during the spring, has won 5 titles on the men's circuit, and is often praised by recruits. Even more so to his credit, the native of Hungary, has won 3 out of the last 4 men's and women's national titles from 2008-2010.

C.) Joel Dennerley. Starting in goal this season for the men will be the junior Dennerley - a native of Australia who many consider to be one of the best players to ever play at USC. Vavic has even gone on to call him the best goalie he has ever coached. As a freshman he was named MPSF Newcomer of the Year, while recording over 200 saves. A year later, there wasn't much of a drop-off, as the 6'5" Dennerley recorded 194 saves (nearly 7 per contest).

D.) Will the offense still be there? Historically, USC has never had much difficulty on the offensive end, but in 2010, that might not be the case any longer. The team loses its top four scorers Justin Rappel, Shea Buckner, Kyle Sterling, and Krumpholz, from a year ago. Looking to replace their production will be junior driver Peter Kurzeka (29 goals/2009) and junior two-meter Matt Burton (17 goals/2009). Vavic will be counting upon both position players to use their experience to provide leadership for the rest of the group, particularly some of the sophomores such as two-meter Brian Boswell, and drivers Stephen Siri, Michael Rosenthal, and Forest Monroe. 

Likelihood of Success: Vavic and the Trojans have made it rather clear that they expect to win another national championship in 2010. When you have a track record like theirs, it's completely understandable. Will it happen? It's tough to say. Cal, UCLA, and UC Santa Barbara, return most of their starters, and Stanford figures to be just as dangerous. It'll be tough with Vavic, Dennerley, and with a roster full of high school All-Americans, it's tough to imagine this group not in the running for the NCAA title once again.

From The Times: 

SAN DIEGO -- The USC women's water polo team won its third national championship in dramatic fashion by beating top-seeded Stanford, 10-9, at San Diego State's Aztec Aquaplex on Sunday. The second-seeded Trojans were ahead by four goals in the fourth quarter before Stanford closed to within one in the final minute.

USC finishes the season with a 25-3 record. USC's last NCAA title came in 2004, and this year marked the Trojans' seventh consecutive NCAA tournament appearance. For USC Coach Jovan Vavic, it is his eighth national championship (five men's and three women's), and it is the third time that he has claimed men's and women's national titles back to back. USC won the 1998 men's championship, followed by the women's 1999 title; the 2003 men's and 2004 women's crowns; and now the 2008 and 2009 men's titles, followed by the 2010 women's championship.    

Congratulations Ladies. Fight On!

Well, the moment's finally here, as the No. 2 seed USC women's water polo team will take on No. 1 seed Stanford for the NCAA championship this evening at 5:00 PM PST in San Diego with CSTV televising the contest. Even with their impressive 24-3 overall record, however, the Women of Troy have already lost twice this season to Stanford - both games taking in Palo Alto. Combining their struggles against Stanford and their inability to take home the NCAA title in recent years, many have questioned this team's ability to finally get over the hump. Yet, this current group of players doesn't see it that way. From Pedro Moura of ESPNLosAngeles.com:

Led by longtime men's and women's coach Jovan Vavic, USC has made its way to the championship match three of the last four seasons, only to come up empty each time. So, if the past is any indication - well, the Women of Troy argue that past is no indication. 

They say they're a different team in 2010 than in 2009 and 2008 and 2006. Judging from the words of [senior two-meter Kami] Craig, they might be right. 

"We play for each other," says Craig, who joined the team in 2006 but sat out the 2008 season to compete in the Olympics, where she won a silver medal for the United States. "We're a solid unit as a team and we fight together as a team for the same goal. We have a tight unit here and if we stay as powerful and energetic as we have this season, then we'll be successful throughout this tournament." 

There is no question that this is a capable unit. Aside from their three losses, two to Stanford and one to UCLA, the Women of Troy have been nearly invincible in every contest, winning most of their games by double-digit margins. Surely, however, that isn't going to happen today against a vary potent Stanford team that has had USC's number in recent years. But don't forget that these Trojans have a senior class with a chip on its shoulder. This collection of seniors, despite a remarkable record of success in terms of individual accolades and conference titles, has not captured that ever-elusive NCAA championship. Could that change today? Quite possibly. For the sake of this bunch, let's hope they can get it done.

If you're watching the game, feel free to post your thoughts below.

Fight On!

After a disappointing loss to UCLA in the MPSF Championship Game nearly two weeks ago, the USC women's water polo team bounced back in a big way during Friday afternoon's NCAA Quarterfinal matchup against No. 7 seed Marist. The Women of Troy, looking to win their first NCAA Championship since 2004, took advantage of an inexperienced Marist squad, cruising to a relatively easy 20-5 victory over the Red Foxes. 

In the early goings, USC, much like in previous games, jumped out to an early lead, tallying six goals in the first period. To make things even more frustrating for the opposition, junior driver Joelle Bekhazi netted three of the team's first four goals to post a hat trick within the first quarter alone. 

But despite building a comfortable lead, the Women of Troy were relentless, as they went on to post a 16-1 lead - a margin that made a Marist comeback essentially impossible. So yet, despite 3 goals from the Red Foxes in the final period, USC was able to win by a 15-goal margin - their biggest of the season.

With a victory in hand, USC, which improved to 23-3 overall on the year, will appear in its seventh straight NCAA semifinal tomorrow against No. 6 seed LMU at 5:45 p.m. tomorrow evening with the opportunity to advance to Sunday's title match - possibly against No. 1 seed Stanford. 

Coincidently enough, LMU's win today came against MPSF postseason champion UCLA, which was aiming to win its 6th straight NCAA championship - a remarkable feat for any schools. Just thought I'd through that in there as well.

Fight On Ladies!

Back-to-Back Baby!

And we beat ucla doing it...

As soon as there is a story up I will update this.

Fantastic job guys!!

FIGHT ON!