CALIFORNIA - The women's water polo team will make their way to the west as they look to participate in the annual and highly esteemed Convergence Tournament (hosted by Pomona-Pitzer Colleges) after a tune-up with Whittier College. 

The match against Whittier will be on Thursday, February 27th at 2:00 PM CT. Then, to begin the Convergence, the first pair of matches will take place on Friday, January 28th at the Axelrood Aquatics Center in Claremont, California, and will be against Azusa Pacific University at 4:00 PM CT followed by Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges at 9:00 PM CT. The next day on Saturday, March 1st will begin with a match against Villanova University at 11:00 AM CT and will conclude the invite with Occidental College at 2:45 PM CT. 

The Bearcats are 8-16 all-time in the Convergence Tournament, as they split 2-2 last year in the event. 

Select contests will be streamed live on the FloSports app or online at www.flosports.tv/ with a payment subscription required. Live stats for the matches will be on https://www.thefosh.net/; see below for specific/applicable destinations. 

*Note that streams and/or live stats may change or adjust throughout the course of the weekend. Please check back here regularly or on McKendree's women's water polo schedule for updates. 

BEARCATS CURRENTLY

McKendree is coming off their best 15-game start to the season in program history, as they also tied their longest win streak of seven, in which they did twice in the 2023 season. The Bearcats recently beat Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin last Saturday in a commanding 11-3 win. 

Against the Firebirds, McKendree enacted a series of runs of 3-0+ on three separate occasions. Junior attacker Joey Rebelo (Montreal, Québec) and sophomore attacker Shanelle Márquez (Madrid, Spain) each finished with a pair of goals as the former rounded out with an assist, two drawn exclusions, and a steal while the latter came away with one dawn exclusion and one steal. Junior attacker Dylan Murphy (Carlsbad, Calif.) tabbed a goal, an assist, two drawn exclusions, and a team-high three steals. Fifth-year attacker Jasmin Guzman (Cicero, Ill.) had one goal, two assists, and a pair of drawn exclusions and steals. Senior goalkeeper Sydney Kane (Kankakee, Ill.) snatched 11 saves and one steal in the win. 

Rebelo continues to be one of the most dominant players in the group. The junior leads the team in assists (23), points (60), steals (17), and field blocks (6) while being second in goals (37) and shots attempted (77). The Montreal, Québec native ranks at the top of the WWPA currently in total goals (2nd – 37), total assists (1st – 23), total points (1st – 60), total field blocks (2nd – 6), total steals (1st – 17), goals per game (4th – 2.5), assists per game (3rd – 1.5), points per game (1st – 4.0), and steals per game (4th – 1.1). Rebelo is top nationally in total points (7th – 60) and points per game (9th – 4.0). 

Kane is still putting up great numbers on the defensive end as she has done all season. The senior is top in the WWPA in total steals (3rd – 16), total saves (1st – 158), save percentage (1st – 59.0%), goals-against average (2nd – 8.00), saves per game (1st – 10.5), and steals per game (4th  – 1.1)...The Kankakee, Illinois native is top nationally in total saves (1st – 158), save percentage (1st – 59.0%), goals-against average (2nd – 8.00), and saves per game (1st – 10.5). 

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

Whittier College | Thursday, February 27th, 4:00 PM CT 

    Last Matchup: W, 19-9 on 3/2/2024 | RECAP | BOX SCORE 

This will be the third-ever meeting between the two programs. The two teams have split the two prior meetings where McKendree handily won last season 19-9 while Whittier got the 113-7 victory back in 2019. 

The Poets are 0-5 in their early part of the season, including going 0-2 last weekend in the Tina Finali Tournament. They are receiving votes in this week's Women's Varsity Division III Top 10.

Azusa Pacific University | Friday, February 28th, 4:00 PM CT 

    Last Matchup: W, 17-8 on 3/4/2023 | RECAP 

This will be the third-ever meeting between the two programs, as Azusa Pacific has won the prior two meetings by nine and 16 points. 

The Cougars are an even 8-8 on the season and are 0-1 in Golden Coast Conference (GCC) play in a loss against Loyola Marymount University. They have won six straight, which included 4-0 outing in the Cal Lutheran Tournament this past weekend. 

DIII No.2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges | Friday, February 28th, 9:00 PM CT 

    Last Matchup: N/A 

This will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs. 

The Athenas sit at 4-6 on the season with yet to play in SCIAC action. They also competed in the Tina Finai Tournament, going 2-0 against the University of Toronto and the University of California, Merced. They are placed second in this week's Women's Varsity Division III Top 10.

No.23 Villanova University | Saturday, March 1st, 11:00 AM CT 

    Last Matchup: L, 7-17 on 2/4/2024 | RECAP | BOX SCORE 

This will be the sixth-ever meeting between the two programs, as Villanova came victorious in four of the previous five, including the last three. McKendree did snag a narrow 14-13 win in 2019 as part of the Washington and Jefferson Invite. 

The Wildcats began the season 4-0 but are now standing at 7-5 overall with yet to play in MAAC action. Their most recent outing was a 16-13 win versus Siena College on Saturday, February 15th. They are placed 23rd in this week's Women's Varsity Top 25.

DIII No.8 Occidental College | Saturday, March 1st, 2:45 PM CT 

    Last Matchup: W, 9-3 on 2/18/2024 | RECAP | BOX SCORE 

This will be the seventh-ever meeting between the two programs, as the Bearcats won each of the last five games in the series and leads 5-1 overall. 

The Tigers have only played three games so far this season, as they are 2-1 on the season with wins against Carthage College and Austin College with a loss to the University of Toronto. They have yet to play in SCIAC play. They are placed eighth in this week's Women's Varsity Division III Top 10.

TUNE IN-FO

Click HERE to take you to the Tournament Central: Convergence Tournament 

at DIII (RV) Whittier College 

WATCH: No stream will be provided for this match.

LIVE STATS: Click HERE 

HISTORY: Click HERE 

vs Azusa Pacific University 

WATCH: No stream will be provided for this match. 

LIVE STATS: Click HERE 

HISTORY: Click HERE 

at DIII No.2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges 

WATCH: Click HERE ($ – FloSports) 

LIVE STATS: Click HERE 

HISTORY: Click HERE 

vs No.23 Villanova University 

WATCH: No stream will be provided for this match. 

LIVE STATS: Click HERE 

HISTORY: Click HERE 

at DIII No.8 Occidental College 

WATCH: Click HERE ($ – FloSports) 

LIVE STATS: Click HERE 

HISTORY: Click HERE 

TEAM GUIDES

TEAM ROSTERS: [McKendree] [Whittier] [Azusa Pacific] [CMS] [Villanova] [Oxy] 

TEAM SCHEDULES: [McKendree] [Whittier] [Azusa Pacific] [CMS] [Villanova] [Oxy] 

TEAM STATISTICS: [McKendree] [Whittier] [Azusa Pacific] [CMS] [Villanova] [Oxy] 

PARTICIPANTS

McKendree University 

Whittier College 

Azusa Pacific University 

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges 

Villanova University 

Occidental College 

Long Island University 

University of Redlands 

Biola University 

University of Michigan 

Pomona-Pitzer Colleges 

University of California, Irvine 

La Salle University 

University of California, Santa Barbara 

Santa Clara University 

Loyola Marymount University 

Concordia University Irvine 

California State University, Fullerton 

Mount St. Mary's University 

Chapman University 

San Diego State University 

Marist University 

California State University, Northridge 

University of California, Merced 

California Institute of Technology 

Fresno Pacific University 

California State University, Monterey Bay 

California Lutheran University 

Augustana College (Ill.) 

University of La Verne 

For more updates and information on Bearcat Athletics, please continue to visit McKBearcats.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 
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