NCAA Title Defense Begins In 2026

STANFORD, Calif. - Defending NCAA champion Stanford opens its 2026 campaign on Jan, 18, chasing its fourth national championship in five seasons and 11th NCAA title overall.

The nation's only program to have participated at every NCAA Championship since the event's inception, Stanford put the finishing touches on a dominant campaign in 2025. In addition to producing one of only four 15-0 starts in school history, the Cardinal recorded three wins apiece against fellow contenders USC and UCLA while holding the nation’s No. 1 ranking for most of the season. Stanford also captured both the NCAA and MPSF crowns in the same season for the fourth time in school history (2025, 2023, 2022, 2014).

Stanford, which is seeking an NCAA repeat for the fourth time in program history, outlasted USC 11-7 to capture the 2024 NCAA crown. The championship match followed a similar regular-season script of the Cardinal pairing a balanced offense with a suffocating defense. Stanford scored at least 10 goals in every game, averaged 15.9 overall and received 20 goals from nine different players. The Cardinal also excelled defensively, with its 168 goals allowed the fewest of any school in the nation.

The challenge in 2026 will be overcoming the departure of four-time All-American Ryann Neushul, who last year was named Stanford’s eighth recipient of the Peter J. Cutino Award as the nation’s most outstanding player. Neushul, who closed out a unique seven-year career which began as a freshman in 2019, became Stanford’s first four-time NCAA champion in school history (2019, 2022-23, 2025) and departed The Farm with 228 career goals to rank fifth all-time in school history.

Few teams would be equipped to survive that type of loss but the Cardinal’s strength remains its elite depth. The offense will be led by returning All-Americans Jenna Flynn (team-high 68 goals, 31 assists, 20 multi-goal games) and Juliette Dhalluin (41 goals, 36 assists), along with Serena Browne (32 goals), Maggie Hawkins (32 goals), Kamryn Barone (23 goals) and Ella Woodhead (23 goals).

Three of those six players - Flynn (United States), Dhalluin (France) and Browne (Canada) - competed for their country at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics while the Cardinal added a fourth over the summer in Sienna Green (Australia), a 2024 Olympic silver medalist and All-American transfer from UCLA who totaled 50 goals in two seasons with the Bruins.

Stanford also boasts the nation’s top goalkeeper in All-American Christine Carpenter, who finished with 165 saves during her first full season. Named MVP of both the MPSF All-Tournament Team and NCAA All-Tournament Team, Carpenter was also a second-team All-MPSF selection.

The fall season provided a rare glimpse into how Stanford might fare in 2026, with the nation’s top programs competing in November at the Legacy Crown, a tournament honoring the 25th anniversary of the inclusion of Olympic women's water polo. Stanford won both of its games against collegiate opponents (18-6 over Long Beach State, 14-8 over USC) before producing a runner-up finish in a 13-9 loss to New York Athletic Club, an Olympian-themed roster featuring the sport’s biggest names.

Stanford’s already-decorated coaching staff also got even stronger this summer, with the most revered and accomplished player in the history of women’s water polo returning to The Farm. Joining the staff as associate head coach is Brenda Villa, one of only two four-time Olympic medalists (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012) who won 20 medals overall in her playing career representing Team USA. A three-time All-American and Hall of Famer who led the Cardinal to its first NCAA title in 2002, Villa became Stanford’s first Peter J. Cutino Award recipient and was later named the Female Water Polo Player of the Decade (2000-09) by FINA Aquatics World Magazine.

Stanford begins its 2026 campaign on Jan. 18 hosting UC Davis, representing the first of four matches to be held at Avery Aquatic Center.

After three weekends of tournament play, the Cardinal hosts Arizona State on Feb. 21 in the MPSF opener for both schools.

Stanford welcomes USC to The Farm on March 22 in the latest chapter of the sport’s best rivalry. The Cardinal and Trojans have squared off in six of the last nine NCAA finals.

The regular season concludes with Stanford hosting Cal in the Big Splash on April 4. The Cardinal has won 21 of the last 26 matchups in the rivalry series over the last 11 seasons.

The MPSF Championship is scheduled for April 10-12 in Berkeley.

The NCAA Championship is slated for April 24-26 in La Jolla, with UC San Diego serving as the host.