UCI women’s water polo is No. 4 seed

The UC Irvine women’s water polo team is the No. 4 seed and will play No. 5-seeded Loyola Marymount in the first round of the NCAA Championship, May 11 at 8:15 p.m. at San Diego State.

The Anteaters (24-6) won their fourth straight Big West Conference Tournament title and are making their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

UCI split two matches with Loyola Marymount (20-9) this season, posting a 12-9 win at LMU on Feb. 18 and absorbing a 9-6 loss on Feb. 25 at UCI.

Stanford (23-2) is the No. 1 seed, with UCLA (21-3) seeded No. 2 and USC (21-5) seeded No. 3.

UCI lost at Stanford, 17-5, on March 4 and fell to UCLA, 10-6, at home on April 14. UCI has not played USC this season.

If victorious against LMU, UCI would likely face Stanford, which battles Pomona-Pitzer in the first round.

The semifinals of the eight-team tournament are May 12, with the title match set for May 13 at 8:15 p.m.

— From staff reports