THOUSAND OAKS, Calif.— The Cal Lutheran men's water polo 2019 schedule is highlighted by two tournaments, one on the East Coast and the other in Claremont, Calif., to help prepare the Kingsmen for a 14-game conference grind.
The Violet and Gold are fresh off a 2018 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Tournament appearance and are ready to make an even bigger splash in 2019.
"I am looking forward to getting back to work with the team," said head men's water polo coach Craig Rond. "They have worked extremely hard, getting ready for the upcoming campaign.
"We are all looking forward to building on such a successful run last year. We were forced to deal with a great deal of adversity last year after the Borderline shootings and fires. I can't rave enough of the job this group of young men did last year through so much heart-ache and devastation."
The Kingsmen get the season started with their annual East Coast trip. This year, CLU will compete in the Brown University Invitational on Sept. 7-8. Cal Lutheran takes on Connecticut College to open the year Saturday at 8 a.m. and will finish the day with Division I foe and host, Brown University at 1 p.m.. The second day includes another Division I opponent, Harvard, at 7 a.m. and then the Kingsmen get MIT at 10. All times are Pacific Standard Time.
After almost two weeks, the season continues with SCIAC play. Cal Lutheran opens conference at home with defending SCIAC champion, Pomona-Pitzer, on the Sept. 21at 11 a.m. CLU has a four-game stretch of SCIAC opponents, including PP, before their second tournament.
The Gary Troyer Invite is hosted by Pomona-Pitzer from Oct. 4-5. The Violet and Gold's opponents include Santa Clara, Fordham, Fresno Pacific and McKendree.
CLU then returns home for two non-conference games, Austin College and Ottawa (Ariz.), before jumping back into SCIAC play. The Kingsmen get Chapman at home on Oct. 12 at 11 a.m. and then Occidental on Oct. 16 at 4 p.m.
Senior Day for the Kingsmen will take place on the Nov. 2 at 11 a.m. The regular season ends two weeks later on Nov. 16 with Pomona-Pitzer at 11 a.m.
"I am so pleased with the leadership of our seniors. Tanner Kaplan, Seth Hightower and George Lundgren have done a fantastic job in keeping the guys focused and building team rapport.
"I am extremely proud of our guys for the great young men they are. They work hard in the classroom, the pool and in life."
The top four SCIAC teams advance to the SCIAC Tournament which is Nov. 22 and 24 with the champion and runner-up advancing to the Division III National Championship on Dec. 6 and 8.
2019 Schedule: Kingsmen Water Polo
CLU Instagram: CLUSports
Sport IG: kingsmen_water_polo
CLU Twitter: CLUSports
Sport Twitter: CLUmWaterPolo
CLU Facebook: CLUSports
Hashtags: #clusports #ownthethrone #goregals #gokingsmen #theSCIAC #ncaad3
Release by Ryan Jorgenson, Sports Information Director
