#GCCWATERPOLO – The 2026 season begins Friday, Jan. 16, as six of the seven Golden Coast Conference teams take to the pool on opening weekend. In all, 18 games will get the new season started.
OPENING WEEKEND
The first game of the season features No. 25 California Baptist hosting the Lancer Joust and taking on La Verne at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 16. From there, 17 more games will take place to open the 2026 collegiate women’s water polo season for the Golden Coast Conference.
There are seven games on the opening day of the collegiate women’s water polo season. No. 7 Fresno State will also open the season by hosting the Fresno State Polopalooza. The Bulldogs will play four ranked teams over the weekend, starting with No. 15 Michigan on Friday night.
Ten games will take place on Saturday, Jan. 17, including No. 8 LMU beginning its title defense with a pair of home games.
Here is a look at the opening weekend slate:
FRIDAY, JAN. 16
La Verne at #25 California Baptist – 9:00 AM (Lancer Joust)
Azusa Pacific vs. #2 USC – 10:30 AM (Lancer Joust)
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps vs. #21 San Diego State – 11:00 AM (CSUF Invite)
Azusa Pacific vs. La Verne – 1:30 PM (Lancer Joust)
#6 Long Beach State vs. #21 San Diego State – 3:00 PM (CSUF Invite)
#18 UC Santa Barbara at #25 California Baptist – 3:00 PM (Lancer Joust)
#15 Michigan at #7 Fresno State – 6:30 PM (Polopalooza)
SATURDAY, JAN. 17
#17 UC Davis at Santa Clara – 9:00 AM
Concordia at #8 Loyola Marymount – 10:00 AM
#10 Indiana at #7 Fresno State – 11:00 AM (Polopalooza)
Biola vs. #21 San Diego State – 11:00 AM (CSUF Invite)
Azusa Pacific vs. #13 UC San Diego – 1:00 PM (Claremont, CA)
Azusa Pacific at #24 Pomona-Pitzer – 3:00 PM
Whittier College at #8 Loyola Marymount – 3:00 PM
Fresno Pacific at Santa Clara – 3:00 PM
#8 UC Irvine at #7 Fresno State – 5:00 PM (Polopalooza)
#21 San Diego State at Cal State Fullerton – 7:00 PM (CSUF Invite)
SUNDAY, JAN. 18
#12 San Jose State at #7 Fresno State – 11:00 AM (Polopalooza)
Take a look at the entire schedule here >>
PRESEASON COACHES’ POLL
Fresno State has been picked to win the Golden Coast Conference in the 2026 season, according to the annual Preseason Coaches’ Poll released Friday. The seven GCC head coaches gave the Bulldogs 35 points, four more than second-place LMU.
Fresno State has won four straight GCC tournament titles (2021–24) and three regular season championships (2021–23). LMU won last year’s tournament and the last two regular season titles. The two teams have met in the GCC title game three of the last four seasons, including the last two championship matches.
Fresno State earned five first-place votes to LMU’s two to claim the top spot. Rounding out the poll are Pacific (26 points) in third, San Diego State (21) in fourth, California Baptist (17) in fifth, Azusa Pacific (9) in sixth and Santa Clara (8) in seventh.
Find the full poll here >>
ROAD TO THE GCC CHAMPIONSHIP
Conference play begins a month into the season with San Diego State traveling to California Baptist on Saturday, Feb. 14. It will be the first of 35 conference matchups as the road to the annual GCC Championship begins.
The 2026 GCC Championship will run from April10-12 at Fresno State. The action begins Friday, Apr. 10 with three quarterfinal matches with the top seed earning a bye to the semifinals. It will continue with a pair of semifinals and a pair of consolation games on Saturday, Apr. 11. The tournament will close with the third-place game followed by the championship match-up on Sunday, Apr. 12. Every game of the 2026 GCC Championship will be streamed live thanks to streaming partner Overnight Media. Learn more >>
WHAT TO WATCH FOR IN 2026
Each preseason we ask the coaches to give us two players to look out for from their team during the upcoming season. Here is a look at each team and our 2026 Players to Watch:
Azusa Pacific
Azusa Pacific finished the 2025 season at 17-15 overall and 2-5 in the GCC. In 2026 they will rely on senior goalie Daniela Herrero Miralles and senior Jessie Nelson. Miralles was a 2025 GCC Honorable Mention selection after ranking second in the GCC with 267 saves. She added 37 steals and 33 assists. Nelson was the 2025 GCC Newcomer of the Year after scoring 67 goals with 29 ejections drawn. She ranked seventh in the GCC in goals.
California Baptist
The Lancers placed fifth in the GCC last season going 12-16 overall and 3-4 in conference play. They will be led in 2026 by attacker Reese Beringer and utility Julia Almendariz. Beringer, a graduate student, is poised to take a big step forward this season after scoring 29 goals with 19 assists, 15 steals, and 12 field blocks. Almendariz, a junior, had 12 goals and 16 assists and is transitioning into the center position which will add a “fun dynamic for us this season.”
Fresno State
Fresno State has advanced to the GCC title game the last five seasons, winning four straight tournament titles from 2021-24. They finished 14-10 overall last season and 6-1 in GCC play. The Bulldogs are picked to get back to the title game thanks to a pair of seniors in Hailey Andress and Susanna Martinez. The attacker Andress was a second-team All-American in 2025 and is a two-time First-Team All-GCC selection. She is currently second in career scoring. As for Martinez, the senior attacker from Albuquerque, “has become an offensive and defensive presence and an extremely valuable part of our team.” She had 14 goals last season after playing all 22 games.
LMU
The Lions have won the last two regular season titles and earned the tournament title last season; it was their third overall. They finished 20-12 overall and 7-0 in the GCC. They have not lost a GCC game since 2023. Leading the Lions’ title defense will be graduate student Anna Tarantino and senior Sophia DeMattia. The Naperville, Ill., native Tarantino is the longest tenured Lion on the squad and scored 51 goals with 45 assists (7th in the GCC), 96 points (9th), 38 steals (6th), and 14 field blocks (8th). She was named Second-Team All-GCC. The senior attacker DeMattia had 40 goals and 63 assists (3rd in GCC), good for 103 points (7th). DeMattia enters her final season having developed into one of the more versatile players in the GCC.
Pacific
The Tigers finished the 2025 season with a third-place finish in the GCC tournament, going 14-10 overall and 5-2 in GCC play. Leading the Tigers into the 2026 season are junior goalie Maja Lizy Dulic and redshirt junior Alicia Petkov. Dulic was a 2025 GCC Honorable Mention selection for the Tigers, ranking fourth in the GCC with 204 saves and seventh with 34 steals. Petkov recorded 41 goals and seven assists last season, going for six hat tricks.
San Diego State
The Aztecs tied for third in the GCC last season, going 17-15 overall and 4-3 in GCC play, tied with Pacific. Leading the way in 2026 is senior Claudia Valdes and junior Mimi Stoupas. The senior Valdes from Madrid, Spain, was a Second-Team All-GCC last season and is second on the San Diego State scoring list with 192 career goals. Last season she ranked No. 3 in points (112), No. 3 in blocks (19) and No. 5 in assists (50) in the GCC. Stoupas, a center from Melbourne, Australia, was an honorable mention All-American and First-Team All-GCC after ranking fifth in goals (73) and No. 10 in points (92) in the GCC.
Santa Clara
The Broncos were 7-22 (0-7) last season and will be led by seniors Megan Chambliss and Sydney Maccabe in 2026. The senior driver Chambliss led the team with 41 goals last season and has “stepped into a leadership role this year both in and out of the pool.” Maccabe, a senior driver from Tustin, was second on the team in assists with 21 assists, adding 25 goals and 27 steals.
NATIONAL POLLS
The Collegiate Water Polo Association Varsity Top 25 entering the preseason has Fresno State ranked seventh in the nation, followed by LMU one spot behind at No. 8, tied with UC Irvine. Pacific is ranked 19th, followed by San Diego State at No. 21 and California Baptist at No. 25.
Full poll >>
ABOUT THE GCC
The 2026 campaign will be the 13th season for the Golden Coast Conference and will feature seven institutions competing within the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Following the 2016 season, the women's division earned an automatic bid to the National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championships, with the winner of the annual league tournament representing the GCC. In 2025, LMU knocked off four-time GCC champion Fresno State, who won the tournament in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. It was the Lions' third tournament title.
Heading into the 2026 campaign, Concordia left the GCC to joing the Western Water Polo Association. The league's seven members in 2026 are Azusa Pacific, California Baptist, Fresno State, Loyola Marymount, Pacific, San Diego State, and Santa Clara. This is the last season for the Lancers in the GCC, who will join the Big West in 2026-27. In that 2026-27 season, the GCC will consist of nine teams with Saint Mary's College, San Jose State and UC Davis joining the league.