Division III No. 1 University of Redlands attacker
Max Wagener and No. 2 Pomona-Pitzer Colleges goalkeeper
Liam Byrne earned SCIAC Offensive and Defensive Athlete of the Year accolades to headline the 2024 SCIAC Men’s Water Polo All-Conference teams.
Wagener racked up 45 points with 36 goals for the co-regular season champion Bulldogs, who also earned the top seed in the SCIAC Tournament via tiebreaker. The attacker often stepped up when it mattered most, registering 23 goals in six contests against top-five teams in the standings.
Byrne posted an 8-2 record across 312 minutes in net for the Sagehens with a .468 save percentage on 94 stops. The team captain also nabbed 10 steals and dished out five assists for the co-regular season champion squad with the third-best goal difference in the conference.
Whittier College’s
Noah Bigara stood out among four impressive Poet rookies as Newcomer of the Year. The center drew a whopping 28 exclusions while giving away just four in the hole set and netted 24 goals on a .522 shooting percentage.
Redlands’
Owen Nishimura was recognized with the Character Award, which is presented to a senior who best exemplifies success in the pool, classroom and with involvement in community and school service. A global business and financial economics major with an Asian studies minor, Nishimura plans to pursue a master’s degree in applied economics. He serves as the fundraising chair for the Asian Student Association, treasurer for the Redlands Student Government, chair of the Free Allocation Advisory Committee which distributes funding for clubs and programs and is an analyst with the Redlands Student Investment Fund. Nishimura also is an international consultant with other undergraduate and MBA students in India and Vietnam. He has worked with the University Surf Garden to organize tree giveaways and park cleanups.
Alex Rodriguez and the Pomona-Pitzer bench were awarded Coaching Staff of the Year honors after leading the Sagehens back to a share of the regular season title. Pomona-Pitzer proved to be arguably the most balanced squad in the conference, scoring 15 or more goals in five of the first six SCIAC games while surrendering 13 or fewer goals in all 12 games, including seven with 10 or fewer allowed.
Redlands led the way with three First Team and four total selections, including 2023 Defensive Athlete of the Year
Roberto Barrera and Second Team repeat
Dean Moody.
Zach Whitfield made his second consecutive First Team and
Miles Chiang achieved the same feat on the Second Team for Pomona-Pitzer, while both the last two years’ Newcomers of the Year from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges,
Nick Kennedy and
Luke “Bear” Weigle, made the top squad for a second and third straight year, respectively. Chapman University’s
Everett Prussak earned a repeat First Team and third All-Conference nod alongside
Davin Castillo, who debuted on the First Team, and
Nate Randolph who achieved the rare feat of making the Second Team all four years of a career. California Lutheran University landed one selection on each team while Whittier had two more newcomers crack the Second Team squad. Occidental College landed one Second Team pick and
Peter Trinh, the 2021 Newcomer of the Year, earned a third All-Conference choice for the University of La Verne.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Offensive Athlete
of the Year |
Defensive Athlete
of the Year |
Newcomer
of the Year |
Character
Award |
Coaching
Staff of the Year |
Max Wagener
Redlands |
Liam Byrne
Pomona-Pitzer |
Noah Bigara
Whittier |
Owen Nishimura
Redlands |
Alex Rodriguez
Pomona-Pitzer |
| First Team All-SCIAC |
| Name |
Institution |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Max Wagener |
Redlands |
Sr. |
ATT |
Piedmont, Calif. |
| Liam Byrne |
Pomona-Pitzer |
Sr. |
GK |
McLean, Va. |
| Roberto Barrera |
Redlands |
Sr. |
GK |
Guanajuato, Mexico |
| Davin Castillo |
Chapman |
So. |
ATT |
Upland, Calif. |
| Spencer Clinton |
Redlands |
Sr. |
ATT |
Cypress, Calif. |
| Lincoln Hall |
Cal Lutheran |
Sr. |
ATT |
Camarillo, Calif. |
| Nick Kennedy |
CMS |
So. |
L-ATT |
Costa Mesa, Calif. |
| Everett Prussak |
Chapman |
Sr. |
ATT |
San Clemente, Calif. |
| Luke "Bear" Weigle |
CMS |
Jr. |
C |
Woodside, Calif. |
| Zach Whitfield |
Pomona-Pitzer |
So. |
ATT |
Arroyo Grande, Calif. |
| Second Team All-SCIAC |
| Name |
Institution |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Lorenzo Angelucci |
Whittier |
Fy. |
GK |
Pescara, Italy |
| Miles Chiang |
Pomona-Pitzer |
So. |
ATT |
Temple City, Calif. |
| Cormac Flanders |
Cal Lutheran |
Sr. |
CD |
Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Travis Hughes |
Occidental |
Jr. |
ATT |
Corte Madera, Calif. |
| Zander Montoya |
Whittier |
Fy. |
ATT |
Budapest, Hungary |
| Dean Moody |
Redlands |
Sr. |
ATT |
Camarillo, Calif. |
| Nate Randolph |
Chapman |
Sr. |
C |
Los Altos, Calif. |
| Peter Trinh |
La Verne |
Jr. |
ATT |
Woodside, Calif. |
Follow the SCIAC on Threads (@theSCIAC), X - formerly Twitter (@theSCIAC) and Instagram (@thesciac) with hashtags #SCIACtion and #SoCalSoGood. Watch all home SCIAC games, matches, and meets online through FloSports: https://flosports.link/SCIAC