wCAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard men's water polo returns to action this weekend as it begins NWPC conference play. The Crimson will compete in three road games, opening on Saturday, October 4 against Iona in New Rochelle, followed by a matchup with LIU, and concluding the trip at Princeton on Sunday (Oct. 5).
The first game is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. ET on Saturday against Iona, followed by a 5:00 p.m. matchup with LIU that evening, and wrapping up the weekend with an 11:30 a.m. contest against Princeton on Sunday.
WEEKEND MATCHUPS
• This marks the 71st all-time meeting between Harvard and Iona. The Crimson leads the series 51-19 and is currently on a 23-game win streak dating back to 2013.
• The last matchup came in the NWPC Championship, where Harvard defeated Iona 20-9 to claim third place.
• Harvard holds a perfect record against LIU, winning all five prior matchups. The most recent was a dominant 20-9 victory last season.
• Against Princeton, Harvard trails the all-time series 27-35. The teams split last season's meetings, with Harvard earning a thrilling 17-16 overtime sudden death win, before falling 13-9 later in the year.
APPROACHING HISTORY
• Head coach
Ted Minnis is just one win away from reaching 300 career victories.
• In 2024, Minnis guided the program to its 10th consecutive 20-win season, advancing to the NWPC semifinals.
CUTINO AWARD NOMINEE
• On September 25, Harvard men's water polo's
Jack Burghardt was named to the 2025 Cutino Award Watch List, by the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC), USA Water Polo, and The Olympic Club.
• Burghardt is one of 20 athletes named to the list and earns the recognition for the first time in his career.
• The Peter J. Cutino Award, named for the late Hall of Fame coach, honors the topmen's and women's collegiate water polo player each season.
• Over the past three seasons, Burghardt has been a key contributor and was recognized last year with his first NWPC All-Conference honor, earning a spot on the second team. The junior also received his first ACWPC Honorable Mention after a standout 2024 campaign in which he recorded 54 goals and 29 assists.
CALIFORNIA TRIP RECAP
• On the West Coast trip, Harvard faced two top 10 opponents: No. 1 UCLA and No. 7 Long Beach State University.
• The Crimson went 3-1 on the weekend, securing a close 13-12 win over California State University at Fullerton and narrowly falling to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on a last second goal.
•
Dean Strauser highlighted the offense throughout the weekend recording twelvegoals and four assists, while Burghardt added nine goals.
• The two goalkeepers split time in the cage, with
Oliver Price making 21 saves and
Tanner Furtak adding 10.
NEXT UP
Harvard continues NWPC play next weekend, traveling to Providence, Rhode Island to take on Brown on Saturday, October 11th at 6:00 p.m. ET before returning home to host MIT at Blodgett Pool on Sunday at 12:00 p.m. ET.
