The Tritons qualified with the automatic bid after they won the Western Water Polo Association conference tournament with three consecutive wins over Claremont, Santa Clara and No. 11 UC Davis last weekend, Nov. 19.

No. 10 UCSD will be joined in the four-team tournament by UCLA, who qualified for the national tournament after upsetting USC 10-9.

The winners of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, as well as  the winner of the Collegiate Water Polo Association as well as the highest nationally ranked squad will also receive a bid in the national tournament.          

The semifinal round is scheduled for Dec. 4 at the UC Berkeley campus.

The Tritons have yet to capture a national title, but will be making their 11th national tournament appearance.

The bracket is yet to be released, but UCSD will most likely face off against No. 2 UC Berkeley in their opening match.

The Tritons have only seen the UC Berkeley once this season, dropping the match to the Bears 8-18 on Oct. 9.

However, the loss came during a rough patch for the Tritons, during a stretch in which UCSD lost four consecutive games.
UCSD has since rebounded, winning six of its past eight games.

The Tritons will enter the tournament riding a wave of momentum after winning the WWPA conference tournament.

The Tritons will look to All-Conference Tournament MVP, UCSD’s senior goalkeeper David Morton.

Morton is currently the UCSD’s record holder for career saves, and is sure to be instrumental in UCSD’s tournament run.

UCSD will also depend on the offensive strength of senior driver Graham Saber and juniors John Butler and Brian Donohoe.