Bridgeport, Pa. - The Mercyhurst men's and women's water polo teams are set to rejoin the College Water Polo Association for the 2024-2025 school year after their membership bid was unanimously approved by the CWPA Board of Directors on Wednesday. 

The men's team has been admitted to the Mid Atlantic Conference where they are set to join Fordham, the U.S. Naval Academy, Bucknell, Wagner, George Washington, John Hopkins and Mount St. Mary's. Mercyhurst comes off a season in which they finished 4-22, looking to take a step forward under second year head coach Blair MacDougall. The team returns the majority of their roster from a season ago which includes four All-WWPA honorees and one All-American in Owen Hardner who led the way in both goals (54) and points (62) for the team. The Lakers will not host any home games in the 2024-2025 season but look to  host home games in future seasons. 

Mercyhurst's women's team are set to compete at theDivision I level where they'll go up against Princeton, Michigan, Brown, Harvard, Saint Francis, and Bucknell. The Lakers finished 7-24 during the 2024 campaign and take aim at another solid season after a third-place finish in the WWPA Championships. Mercyhurst returns a strong group with sophomore Freya Green looking to make a major impact once again after a year in which she finished top five on the team in assists and points while being one of the nation's leaders in steals and sprint wins. The women have a full slate of home games for the 2024-2025 school year with their schedule set to be released in the winter.