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Princeton to Host 2009 NCAA Men's Championship
PRINCETON, N.J. -- Princeton University and DeNunzio Pool will host the 2009 National Collegiate Athletic Association Men's Water Polo Championship on December 5-6, 2009.
"We are excited, pleased and
honored to receive the NCAA bid to host the men’s water polo
championship,” Princeton athletic director Gary Walters said.
“DeNunzio Pool is a great facility that is worthy of a
holding an event of this stature. We look forward to welcoming the
top water polo teams in the nation to Princeton in December of
2009.”
“We are very excited to be hosting the NCAA men’s
championship in 2009,” said Princeton head coach Luis
Nicolao. “It will give us an opportunity showcase our great
facility and the wonderful hospitality at Princeton. I am sure it
will be a wonderful event.”
DeNunzio Pool will be the third current Princeton facility to host
an NCAA championship event. The 1975 and 1981 NCAA wrestling
championships were hosted at Jadwin Gymnasium, and the 2004 NCAA
women’s lacrosse championship was played at Princeton
Stadium. Several other NCAA tournament games have been played at
Princeton facilities, including early round games in field hockey,
men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and
women’s soccer and softball.
“We are very fortunate at Princeton to have such a dedicated
staff that enables us to take on a challenge like this, without
compromising our other responsibilities and doing so
eagerly,” added Walters. “We have built a tradition of
hosting major collegiate championship events through the years. We
take pride in our proven record of hosting these events and expect
the 2009 water polo championship to join the growing list of great
championship caliber events held here at Princeton.”
The four-team event takes automatic qualifiers from the Mountain
Pacific Sports Federation, the Western Water Polo Association and
the Collegiate Water Polo Association, plus one at-large bid.
Princeton has appeared in two NCAA water polo championships, with
the last in 2004 when Princeton won the CWPA championship.
Both the 2007 and 2008 championships were hosted by Stanford
University. Loyola Marymount University hosted the 2006
championship, and Bucknell University was the last Eastern school
to host in 2005.
DeNunzio Pool was constructed in 1990 with state-of-the-art design
and technology, making it among the fastest pools in the nation.
The facility is located east of Jadwin Gymnasium. The pool measures
50 meters by 25 yards with a minimum depth of nine feet and a
maximum depth of 17 feet. The pool has two movable bulkheads which
allow for various course configurations for swimming and water
polo. The facility features a fully automatic Colorado timing
system with electronic scoring for diving and water polo.
The pool building includes bleachers to accommodate 1,700
spectators, men’s and women’s locker rooms, an exercise
room, offices, and a conference room in the building. The building
and pool are ADA accessible. Caldwell Fieldhouse connects to
DeNunzio pool at deck level and houses additional locker rooms for
visiting teams and an athletic training room as well as a
connecting tunnel to Jadwin.
The facility has recently undergone a complete renovation and
expansion of the varsity locker rooms and the construction of new
recreational and visiting locker rooms. The lobby and concourse
were upgraded as part of this renovation as well. Also installed
during the renovation was a brand new state-of-the-art sound system
which compliments the new 9’x 17’ Colorado full color
LED video and scoreboard truly making DeNunzio one of the finest
competition pools in the nation.
The facility has played host to several CWPA events, including the
men's and women's Southern, Eastern and ECAC Championships. In
addition, DeNunzio hosted an exhibition game between the Princeton
women's water polo team and the U.S. National Team preceding the
2004 Olympics. The pool has also hosted several Ivy and EISL
swimming championships.
