FULLERTON, Calif. - The Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) has released its 2026 All-Conference honorees on Wednesday, April 8th, prior to the WWPA Championships tournament in Irvine, California this weekend.
Four members of the McKendree squad earned their way onto the all-conference list, including a First Team recipient and two Honorable Mentions.
Head Coach Alex Figueras praised his players who made it to All-WWPA status:
"All three of these athletes have worked hard this year and are extremely deserving of this honor. It's been an honor to coach them, and I hope that they're proud of the recognition that they've earned."
Junior center Bella Morquecho (Chicago, Ill.) received her second First Team All-Conference award as a Bearcat in as many years with the program. She picked up the WWPA Offensive Player of the Week accolade back on January 29th after a nine-goal week against a plethora of top 25 competition. Playing in all 26 games this season, she recorded a hat-trick in eight of them and shot 50.0% or better at the net in 15. Her ability to draw the fouls was immense, as she had 14 outings with three-plus drawn exclusions.
The Chicago product finished the regular season top 10 in the WWPA in total goals (5th – 54) and goals per game (T-5th – 2.1). She led the team in shot attempts (113), goals (54), and drawn exclusions (77).
"Bella has truly cemented herself as one of the best centers in the entire country, having led the conference in drawn exclusions for the second straight year, said Figueras. "Having her in the pool is absolutely a game-changer for us."
Senior attacker Joey Rebelo (Montreal, Québec, Canada) earned her way to an All-Conference Honorable Mention after leading the charge for the McKendree program throughout the season. Playing in all 26 matches, she had seven hat-tricks, and seven times recorded a five-plus point game. The senior also had five contests with three or more steals.
The Canadian was all over the WWPA ranks, as she was one of the best in total assists (6th – 33), total points (8th – 70), field blocks (T-7th – 7), total steals (6th – 36), assists per game (T-4th – 1.3), points per game (T-8th – 2.7), and steals per game (T-7th – 1.4). She topped the team in assists (33) and points (70) offensively and led in steals (36) and field blocks (7) on the defensive end.
"Joey has been such a key player for us for her four years," said Figueras. "This is another testament to her skill in the pool, being someone that we lean on a lot to play big minutes in every game."
Junior attacker Shanelle Márquez (Madrid, Spain) also made her way onto the Honorable Mention squad after posting eight hat-tricks and eight matches with four-plus points contributed in all 26 games while shooting an average of 45.4% on the goal.
The Spaniard was top 10 in the WWPA in total goals (T-9th – 44), total steals (7th – 34), goals per game (10th – 1.7), and steals per game (10th – 1.3).
"Shanelle is constantly working on the little things to keep improving," said Figueras. "She has become such a reliable attacker for us, no matter who we're playing."
Freshman utility Charlie Monroe (The Woodlands, Texas) cemented a spot on the All-Freshman team for the conference for the program's sixth consecutive year putting a player on that squad. In 24 of the 26 games participated, the newcomer tallied 20 goals on the season, including a career-high three against the University of Redlands on March 6th.
The native of Texas also rounded out the year with a pair of assists, a massive 41 exclusions drawn, five takeaways, and a pair of field blocks.
"Charlie has got an extremely bright future and an incredible work ethic - being tied for third in the conference in drawn exclusions as a freshman," said Figueras. "It shows how much of an impact she's already made, and we're excited to see how she keeps developing."
UP NEXT
McKendree – who received the three-seed in the east region – will be back in action when they face (2W) Biola University in the WWPA Championships tournament, which will be held at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center on the Campus of Concordia University Irvine from April 10th through 12th.
The Bearcats will face the Eagles at 5:00 PM CT in the quarterfinal match to play the winner (1E) Salem University and (4W) Fresno Pacific University on Saturday for a semifinal bout. How McKendree fares will determine whether they will play in the championship, third-place game, or in a 5-7th place round robin.
All contests will be streamed for free live and on demand on the WWPA Network. Live stats will also be provided via The FOSH. Tickets can be purchased HERE or over at cuigoldeneagles.com.
The winner of the 2026 WWPA Championship will earn an auto-bid into the upcoming National Collegiate Water Polo Championships, which will be held from April 22nd through 26th in La Jolla, California, and hosted by the University of California San Diego.
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