Former Castilleja water polo coach Ted Minnis makes his first appearance in the NCAA tournament Saturday when his 11th-ranked Harvard men’s team hosts No. 12 Bucknell for the right to play No. 8 UC Davis in next Thursday’s quarterfinal.
The final rounds will be played at Cal, with No. 1 USC and No. 2 UCLA receiving byes into the semifinal round.
The host Bears meet No. 17 Pomona-Pitzer in another quarterfinal game.
The Crimson (25-6) won the inaugural Northeast Water Polo Conference Championship tournament, defeating MIT, No. 12 Princeton and No. 10 Brown to clinch a spot in the national championship for the first time in Harvard history.
Minnis, also a veteran coach at the Stanford Club, has surrounded himself with assistants who have local ties.
Cory Olcott served as a coach at the Stanford water polo club from 2007-10. He also coached at Palo Alto and was an assistant coach on the Stanford women’s water polo team from 1995-97
Olcott began his coaching career at Menlo School, where he founded the women’s water polo team and served as head coach from 1992-94.
Stanford grad Cassie Churnside helped the Cardinal win the 2011 and 2012 national titles.
Sacred Heart Prep grad Grant Harvey has produced three goals, four assists and five steals for Havard this year.
M-A grad Morgan Olson-Fabbro transferred to UC Davis from West Valley. He’s tied for fifth on the Aggies with 28 goals.
Menlo grad Nick Bisconti is a redshirt freshman at Cal. He has nine goals on the year.
By Palo Alto Online Sports
By Palo Alto Online Sports
By Palo Alto Online Sports