SAN DIEGO – After nearly a calendar year of not competing due to COVID-19, last playing on March 7, 2020, San Diego State water polo head coach Carin Crawford has revealed the team's 2021 schedule.
The 18-game slate, which features 11 games at the Aztec Aquaplex, including seven straight from Feb. 20 to March 7, opens with three games at Arizona State. The teams will play twice on Saturday, Feb. 13 (at 9:30 a.m. & 1:45 p.m.) and a single game on Sunday, Feb. 14 at 10 a.m.
The Aztecs and Sun Devils will meet for the 27th, 28th and 29th times. Arizona State holds a 14-12 advantage in the all-time series, including a 6-2 lead in games played in Tempe. San Diego State led the series 12-5 through Feb. 26, 2012, but since then ASU has won nine straight, including a 6-4 victory in the last match-up on March 30, 2019 in Tempe.
The team then returns home to begin a seven-game stretch at the Aquaplex starting with a pair of contests against UC Irvine on Saturday, February 20 at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m.
San Diego State and UC Irvine have faced off 41 times with the Aztecs leading 25-16 in the all-time series. In games played in San Diego State's pool, SDSU has won four of the nine games, but after starting the series 4-1, has dropped the last four meetings, including a 13-8 loss the last time UCI played at the Aquaplex.
One week later, on Saturday, Feb. 27, the UC San Diego Tritons journey to The Mesa for a pair of games, which are scheduled for 12 p.m. and 3 p.m.
The programs have played 58 times with the Aztecs holding a 44-14 lead in the all-time series. UCSD has taken eight of the last nine matchups, including a 3-2 decision last season. In games played in the Aztecs pool, SDSU has dominated, winning 11 of the 14 meetings (11-3), but the Tritons have won the last two times they have come to the Aquaplex to play San Diego State.
The homestand wraps up on March 6 and 7 when the Michigan Wolverines come to town. The teams will play twice on Saturday, March 6 (11 a.m. & 4 p.m.) and once on Sunday, March 7 (1 p.m.).
The Aztecs have taken 12 of the 21 meetings in the all-time series (21-9). The teams have only met in San Diego three times and in those games, San Diego State has a pair of wins. The last matchup in San Diego came on April 10, 2009 and resulted in a 9-8 overtime victory for Michigan.
SDSU opens Golden Coast Conference (GCC) action on Friday, March 12 at Santa Clara. The game marks the 13th meeting between the programs with the Aztecs boasting an 11-1 record against Broncos. Overall, the Aztecs have won the last eight matchups, which includes a four-game winning streak at Santa Clara and an 8-4 win in the SCU pool last year.
GCC play continues in northern California on Saturday, March 13 at Pacific with the start time set for 12 p.m. San Diego State and UOP have played 36 times and the Aztecs have come away the victor 33 times (33-3). In games played in Stockton, SDSU is 9-1 and defeated the Tigers 11-9 last season in what turned out to be the final game of the season before the coronavirus pandemic halted all collegiate sports.
Loyola Marymount comes to the Aquaplex on Saturday, March 20 for SDSU's conference home opener. The start time is scheduled for 12 p.m. and the game will mark the 37th time the programs have played. LMU holds a 19-17 lead in the all-time series, but in the five games played in San Diego, the Aztecs hold a 4-1 advantage. The teams met last year, in a non-conference matchup in the 2020 Triton Invitational, and the Lions defeated San Diego State 12-8.
After a one-year hiatus, the Harper Cup, an annual game between San Diego State and UC San Diego, is back and will be contested on Sunday, March 21 in the Tritons' pool. The Harper Cup is named for UC San Diego men's water polo coach Denny Harper. Harper played at San Diego State as an undergraduate and established the SDSU women's water polo club team. He graduated from SDSU in 1978 and coached the UCSD women's team to five collegiate national championships from 1985-1999.
The Aztecs have won 13 of the 18 times Harper Cup has been contested and have taken six of the nine meetings in the Tritons' pool, but UCSD has wins in each of the last three in La Jolla.
SDSU returns to GCC action for the final four games of the regular season starting with a game against Fresno State on Saturday, March 27 at the Aquaplex. The game, the fourth meeting in the series, has a 1 p.m. start time. The Aztecs are 2-1 against the Bulldogs and won their lone game against Fresno State in its home pool 11-9 on April 8, 2018.
The final regular-season road game is on Wednesday, March 31 against Azusa Pacific. The game is scheduled to be played at Glendora (Calif.) High School and will start at 3 p.m. San Diego State 3-0 against Cougars in games where Azusa Pacific is the home team, and holds a 7-1 advantage in the all-time series.
The regular season's last two games will be played on successive Saturday's at the Aztecs Aquaplex.
Concordia is in town on April 10, with the start time scheduled for 12 p.m., for the ninth meeting in the series. SDSU is 8-0 all-time against the Eagles, including a 2-0 record in San Diego.
The regular season finale is at 12 p.m., on April 17 against California Baptist. San Diego State has a 20-2 advantage in the all-time series and has never lost to the Lancers in seven games in its home pool. The Aztecs are riding an 18-game winning streak against CBU dating back to the 2001 season.
The GCC Championship Tournament will be played in Stockton, Calif., on April 23 and 24 with the NCAA Championship scheduled for May 14-16 at UCLA.
When last season was halted on March 12, 2020, San Diego State was 9-9 overall, 3-0 in GCC play and ranked No. 16 in the nation. In 2021, SDSU returns two-time All-American Emily Bennett (2019 & 2020) and Matty Parenteau, who won the award in 2020. In addition, the Aztecs welcome nine newcomers, including goalie Raquel de Pinho who was a two-time All-American at West Valley College in Saratoga, Calif.
Due to coronavirus pandemic protocols, fans will not be permitted to attend SDSU home games at the Aztec Aquaplex.
2021 Water Polo Schedule Revealed
