(01-24-2018 06:19 PM)GiveEmTheAxe Wrote: (01-24-2018 06:08 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote: The Big West just needs one affiliate and they could have their own men's water polo conference.
They could make an offer to the Air Force Academy and/or SJSU, while Pacific and Pepperdine join their WCC comrades Loyola Marymount and Santa Clara in the WWPA.
I thought of the same thing, but forget Air Force, due to travel outside California (costs, this is not a revenue sport). AF are with Denver in the WWPA anyway. I am a little surprise SJSU's men are not in the MPSF with the same Pac-12 school's their women compete in MPSF with (Cal, Stanford, USC, UCLA, plus ASU women and for now CSUB).
Actually the Pac-12 should sponsor for women's water polo and just absorb the MPSF. SJSU would never leave as an affiliate, for the same reasons SDSU doesn't intend to leave P12 men's soccer, and they'd be set at 6.
The WCC is not far either with UOP, Pepperdine (Men's only), SCU and LMU. Especially with Cal Baptist sponsoring both men's and women's, a natural fit. Air Force men are stretch, but not too bad. After that they need a 5th & 6th women's somewhere. (see note below about Tournament only schools ... D-II Asuza Pacific makes sense and ???)
Note on Penn State Behrend. They did not play a single regular season game against P12 schools in the MPSF; they only participate in the tournament. I suspect the same will be true for Austin College. It's just for the 6 minimum AQ requirement.