CWPA Releases February 10 Women's Varsity Coaches' Polls; Stanford Holds at No. 1

BRIDGEPORT, Pa. -- Stanford University, Pomona-Pitzer Colleges, the University of Michigan and Washington & Jefferson College maintain their No. 1 rankings from the preseason, January 27 and February 3 polls as the Cardinal, Sagehens, Wolverines and Presidents topped the Week 3 Women's Varsity Top 20, Division III Top 10, CWPA Division I Top 10 and CWPA Division III Top 5 polls released today by the Collegiate Water Polo Association.

Voted on by a panel of coaches and administrators from around the country during the preseason and each week of the season based on the cumulative results of each team, the polls are released each Wednesday during the season until the Wednesday following the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championship.

Women's Varsity Top 20 Poll

Stanford University used a perfect 4-0 record last week, including a victory over No. 2 the University of Southern California, to retain its No. 1 position in the Women's Varsity Coaches' Top 20 poll.  Following the victory over USC, the Cardinal became a unanimous No. 1 selection for the first time this season after receiving 99 points for the two previous weeks and ranking as the top selection in the nation from the preseason poll.

Due to a pair of losses by former No. 3 the University of Hawaii last week, the No. 4-6 teams in the nation all moved up one position as the University of California, University of California-Los Angeles and University of Michigan improved to No. 3-5, respectively.

Michigan's No. 5 ranking marks the highest selection for an East Coast team since the NCAA began a championship.

Hawaii slips to No. 6 this week, while Loyola Marymount University, Arizona State University, Hartwick College and San Diego State University round out the Top 10 as nine of the teams ranked in the Top 10 last week remained among the nation's ten best teams for another week, while Hartwick climbed into the Top 10.

San Jose State University slips out of the Top 10 falling back to No. 11, while University of California-Irvine, California State University-Northridge, University of California-Santa Barbara and University of California-Davis rank No. 12-15, respectively.

California Baptist University, California State University-Bakersfield, Brown University, Indiana University and University of Maryland round out the Top 20.

Women's Varsity Division III Top 10 Poll

Another week, another No. 1 ranking for the Pomona-Pitzer Colleges as the Sagehens received 100 points to rank as a unanimous top pick, outdistance California Lutheran University and hold on as the No. 1 team in the Week 3 Women's Varsity Coaches' Division III Top 10 Poll.

Although point totals changed to a minor degree, the Top 10 teams remain constant as University of Redlands, Occidental College, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, Chapman College, Whittier College, Washington & Jefferson College, Grove City College and Macalester College held firm at No. 3-10 behind Pomona-Pitzer and Cal Lutheran.

Women's Collegiate Water Polo Association Division I Poll

Four-time Collegiate Water Polo Association Eastern champion the University of Michigan (2002, 2005, 2008, 2009) received 100 points to rank as a unanimous selection for a second week as the No. 1 team in the Collegiate Water Polo Association Division I Coaches' Poll.

Michigan, which was tied with Hartwick College in the CWPA Preseason Poll with 98 points, took over sole possession of the position in the January 27 poll before ranking No. 1 last week as well.

Indiana University and Brown University held onto the No. 3 and 4 positions, respectively, for another week, while the University of Maryland, Princeton University, Harvard University, Bucknell University, George Washington University and Gannon University exchanged positions to complete the Top 10.

Women's Collegiate Water Polo Association Division III Top 5 Poll

Washington & Jefferson College remains the No. 1 team in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III Tfield as the Presidents received 100 points to rank No. 1 in the Collegiate Water Polo Association Coaches' Division III Top 5 Poll for a fourth consecutive week.

W&J is follwed by Grove City College, Macalester College, Carthage College (Ill.), and Wheaton College (Ill.) as the Top 5.  For the first time this season, the Top 5 experienced a change as Macalester moved in front of Carthage for the No. 3 position.

Comprised of Carthage, Chatham University, Connecticut College, Grove City, Macalester, Penn State University-Behrend, Utica College, Washington & Jefferson and Wheaton, the nine-team organization will competie for a Division III Championship and a berth to the self-funded Division III National Collegiate Championship in May.

The change marks the first time an NCAA conference has divided its membership based on institutional affiliation without an NCAA Division II or III championship in the sport.  Women's water polo, which is an NCAA non-divisional sport, features only one championship event with five automatic qualifiers from the Collegiate Water Polo Association, Western Water Polo Association (WWPA), Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF), Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), along with three at-large selections from among the remaining eligible conference and independent teams.