2011 MAAC Water Polo Championship Begins Saturday
MAAC Sports
Edison, N.J. - The 2011 MAAC Water Polo Championship begins this Saturday, April 30 with two matches at McCann Natatorium on the campus of Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York.
At 1 p.m., top-seeded Iona College will face fourth-seeded St. Francis College (N.Y.). The second semifinal, slated to begin at 3 p.m., will feature second-seeded Marist and third-seeded Wagner College. On Sunday, May 1, the consolation match will be played at noon followed by the championship match 2 p.m. All four contests can be seen live on MAACSports.com.
The 2011 MAAC Water Polo Awards Banquet will be shown on MAACSports.com free of charge. Coverage will begin at 7:45 p.m on Friday, April 29.
Iona enters the championship with a perfect 10-0 mark in league play and an overall record of 23-7. The Gaels received six votes in the latest CWPA national rankings. St. Francis (N.Y.) qualified with a 4-6 conference record and held the tiebreaker (2-0 head-to-head) over Siena, who also finished 4-6. Iona swept the regular season series against the Terriers, winning 14-5 on April 9 and 14-7 on April 16.
Marist secured the #2 seed with a 7-3 MAAC record (17-20 overall). Wagner finished third with a 5-5 league mark and a 16-14 overall record. The Red Foxes went 2-0 against the Seahawks with a narrow 10-9 victory on April 9 and a 10-7 win on April 17.
Marist enters the weekend having won three consecutive MAAC titles and four overall. Wagner will be looking to match Marist's record of four championships having previously won in 2003, 2005, and 2007. Iona, MAAC runners-up for three straight years, won its lone title in 2004, while St. Francis (N.Y.) has never advanced past the semifinals.
Tickets for the 2011 MAAC Water Polo Championship can be purchased in advance at TicketLeap.com or at the gate. All-session passes are available for $25. Single-session admission is $15 for adults and $5 for children and students.
The winner of the 2011 MAAC Women's Lacrosse Championship will advance to an NCAA Championship Play-In Match against the winner of the SCIAC Championship. The match will be held at the Greenwich, Conn. YMCA on Saturday, May 7.