FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific women's water polo team will have a new conference affiliation beginning in the spring of 2018. FPU Director of Athletics Aaron Henderson announced Wednesday that FPU will be joining the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA).
 
"This is a great opportunity for our women's water polo program and we are excited to join the WWPA," said Henderson. "The move aligns us with like-minded institutions and will improve the student-athlete experience as we compete in a conference with fellow NCAA Division II programs. We are thrilled with the opportunity to put our student-athletes in a position to succeed at the national level."
 
The Sunbirds will play their final season in the Golden Coast Conference (GCC), a primarily NCAA Division I conference, this coming spring. FPU joined the league in 2014 and has totaled a 1-18 conference record over the three years. The Sunbirds are coming off a 9-17 overall record and a 1-6 mark in league action. The nine wins marked the highest total since 2012.
 
"It was great to be a part of the newly formed GCC and it was an honor to be involved in the inaugural season. We thank them for all the support and opportunities," said FPU head women's water polo coach Bryan Suhovy. "As a program the move to the WWPA, which is a true Division II conference, is one we are extremely excited for. Commissioner Christy Medigovich has been great in helping us with the transition, and sharing the vision of the WWPA, which aligned with the FPU women's water polo program. It's an exciting time for our program and all of our student-athletes are extremely excited about this new adventure."
 
The move will align the men's and women's programs at FPU into the same conference. The men joined the WWPA in 2014.
 
The Sunbirds join Cal State East Bay, Cal State Monterey Bay, Gannon, Mercyhurst, Sonoma State and UC San Diego as members of the WWPA. UCSD has represented the conference at the NCAA Championships the last three seasons.
 
The WWPA competes within the NCAA and qualifies for the NCAA's automatic bid to the National Collegiate Water Polo Championships for both the men (fall) and women (spring). The WWPA features a championship tournament at the conclusion of both the men's and women's seasons, with the winner earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The men's championship normally runs the third weekend of November while the women's takes place the final weekend of April.
 
"We are pleased, and we are proud to welcome Fresno Pacific University women's water polo to the family of the Western Water Polo Association," said WWPA commissioner Christy Medigovich.  "In Fresno Pacific, we have added an institution with a strong academic reputation and athletic tradition. They are committed to the conference's vision of strengthening our community to create more opportunity and healthy competition at the Division II level. We look forward to having the Sunbirds join us for next season."