All-MPSF Men’s Water Polo Teams Announced; Dodd & Rasic Named Players of the Year

Courtesy: MPS Sports

2024 Delfina All-MPSF West Men’s Water Polo (PDF)

2024 Delfina All-MPSF East Men’s Water Polo (PDF)

2024 MPSF WEST PLAYER & NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
RYDER DODD · #19 · FRESHMAN · ATTACKER · UCLA

UCLA freshman attacker Ryder Dodd (Long Beach, CA) is the MPSF scoring leader with 82 goals entering the postseason, ranking him in the top-15 in MPSF single-season history. He also has 25 assists for a conference-leading 107 points. Dodd has scored in all 22 games, with multiple goals in all but one. Dodd is a four-time MPSF weekly award honoree, earning Delfina MPSF West Player of the Week and S&R Sport Newcomer of the Week twice each. In the regular season finale (Nov. 16), he recorded his 14th hat trick of the year with five goals to lead a 16-9 win over No. 4 USC. Dodd led a pair of MPSF road wins at No. 7 California and No. 2 Stanford (Nov. 2-3), helping the Bruins clinch the No. 1 seed in the MPSF Tournament. He scored six goals and drew five exclusions in the 20-14 win at Cal, and scored all four of the Bruins’ fourth quarter goals. He scored a career-best eight goals in an 18-12 win at then-No. 7 Pepperdine (Oct. 12). Dodd, the only freshman on the Delfina All-MPSF first team, is UCLA’s sixth all-time MPSF Player of the Year recipient (Rafael Real Vergara-2023, Garrett Danner-2015-16, Scott Davidson-2009, Sean Kern-2000) and is the fourth Bruin to earn MPSF Newcomer of the Year (Ben Liechty-2023, Makoto Kenney-2020, Garrett Danner-2013). Dodd also becomes the first-ever MPSF Men’s Water Polo player to earn both major awards in the same year.

UCLA Head Coach Adam Wright has guided the Bruins to a 21-1 regular season record and 5-1 in conference play, leading to the MPSF’s top seed in the championship tournament. As the top-ranked team for the majority of the season, UCLA posted 17 wins over top-15 ranked opponents, 10 wins over the top-10, and four over the top-five. The Bruins allowed double-digit goals in just six of their 22 contests, while reaching that threshold offensively in all but one game. UCLA placed a high of nine players on the 2024 Delfina all-conference teams, and became the first in MPSF history to sweep the three major awards for two consecutive years. Wright is 365-67 overall (.845) since taking over the program in 2009. This is the fourth MPSF Coach of the Year award for Wright (2023-24, 2017, 2011), and overall for UCLA Men’s Water Polo.

Augustana junior center Stevan Rasic (Park Ridge, IL) scored in all 18 regular season games and ranks second in the entire conference with 67 goals entering the postseason. He was a two-time Delfina MPSF East Player of the Week this year, going back-to-back on October 7 and 14. Rasic totaled 24 goals, five drawn exclusions, three steals, and three field blocks through the first of two unbeaten MPSF East weekends (Oct. 12-13). He took down his own school record from one week earlier with eight goals (on eight shots) in the Vikings’ win over Wheaton. The week prior, he collected 17 goals and seven drawn exclusions across games vs. UC Merced, Biola, Chapman, and Whittier, each played in Southern California (Oct. 4-5). He scored seven goals in the 12-6 win over UCM and four in an 11-10 sudden-victory win over D-II Biola, including the OT game-winner. The Vikings, competing in just their fourth season and third in the MPSF, completed their third-straight unbeaten conference schedule. Rasic is the second Viking to earn MPSF Player of the Year (Declan Hutton-2023).

Penn State Behrend freshman Nick Thompson (Hudsonville, MI) ranks fifth in the entire MPSF with 49 goals and ninth in total points with 62, and is one of three freshmen from both divisions combined to be named to the Delfina All-MPSF first team. Thompson secured his second S&R Sport MPSF Newcomer of the Week award after he accumulated 12 goals, three assists, three steals, and three field blocks in four conference games at Austin College (Nov. 9-10), which included two victories. His first weekly honor came on the heels of nine goals and a team-high eight steals in four games at Gannon (Oct. 26-27). Thompson recorded three takeaways vs. D-I Mercyhurst and D-II Salem, while scoring four goals against D-II McKendree. Thompson becomes Penn State Behrend’s first-ever student-athlete to earn an MPSF major annual award.

Penn State Behrend Head Coach Gina-Bella Mata’afa took over at the helm of the program just weeks prior to the 2023 season opener, after spending the previous two years as the Lions’ assistant.  She has coached the squad to seven regular season wins in each of her first two years, tying the program record which was achieved just two other times since 2000. The Lions picked up four MPSF wins this year, the most-ever for the program. Penn State Behrend landed four players on the All-MPSF teams this year, led by Jack Holl (third career selection) and Nick Thompson on the first team. Thompson also became the school’s first-ever player to earn a major MPSF annual award. Mata’afa repeats her MPSF Coach of the Year honor from last year.