CBU Polo Players Make ACWPC All-Academic Team

For the second year in a row, California Baptist University produced 11 Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches All-Academic players in 2015. In addition to the individual honors, CBU was distinguished as a whole as its 3.27 team grade point average ranked 14th in the ACWPC, which includes NCAA teams from all three divisions. It is the fourth time the Lancers have had up to 11 All-Academic honorees in the ACWPC, matching the feat in 2011 and qualifying a program-high 12 in 2007. ACWPC All-Academic awards are given in three tiers: outstanding, superior and excellent. Half of the Lancers were marked as outstanding by posting a GPA between 4.00 and 3.71. Superior students fall between a 3.70 and 3.41 and excellent honorees logged a 3.40 to 3.20. Jessica Castellano, Courtney Menard, Marnie Kavern, Meghan Rowland, Valerie Spezzaferri and Sydney Iturraran all earned the outstanding label. Hannah Evans, who was named the NCAA Division II co-Player of the Year on June 26, hit superior status, alongside Raine Paul and Annie Eubanks. Caroline Howard and Kaitlyn Persky distinguished themselves as excellent. For Paul, a graduating senior, it represented an impressive career both in and out of the pool, as she made the All-Academic team all four years. It was the third-straight honor for juniors Evans, Menard, Rowland and Iturraran. Sophomores Castellano and Spezzaferri captured their second such award, while freshman Eubanks and Kavern debuted on the prestigious list.