The MSU men’s water polo team has achieved something no other college water polo team has before by playing in four consecutive national championship games.
The run of four title games, including a win in the 2008 Men’s Collegiate Club Championship, is the most recent success for the program that has won three championships since 2000.
“It really speaks to the program we’ve built here, to be one of the most dominant programs in the Big Ten and the country,” assistant coach Greg Jenkins said. “It truly shows the dedication that our players have, because it’s a club team and the players choose to play.”
After three straight finals appearances and three seasons of undefeated Big Ten play, the team knew they had a target on their back, Jenkins said.
“Coming into the season we knew where we stood,” he said. “We spent much of the year ranked No. 1 and weathered the storm.”
In the national tournament at Ohio, the MSU team beat Columbia, Oregon and Florida before a face-off against No. 1 seed California Polytechnic State.
The defending champion Mustangs had trouble with MSU and fell behind early. The Spartans were able to finish them off 15-13. Senior captains Jon Haga and Evan Perry were both awarded first team All-Tournament titles. Sophomore goalie Ben Shantz earned second team honors.
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