(RV) Air Force Heads To WCC Men’s Water Polo Championships

This Week: (RV) Air Force (17-15 overall, 1-5 WCC) heads to the 2023 West Coast Conference men's Water Polo Championships, held Nov. 17-19 at Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif. The seventh-seeded Falcons take on second-seeded #12 LMU on Friday, Nov. 17 at 10 am PT. All games at the tournament will be broadcast on ESPN+ and will feature live stats via Fosh.

Series History vs. LMU
Air Force trails 29-40. Last meeting, a 12-7 loss at LMU on Oct. 27.

LAST TIME OUT: Air Force dropped a tough 13-11 overtime game to #18 Santa Clara last Friday on senior day at the Academy. Tom Leggett led the Falcons with six goals and seven points.

Leggetts Earns All-WCC First-Team Honors
Freshman Tom Leggett was named to the WCC All-Conference Men's Water Polo Team. He earned first-team honors. Leggett is the leading scorer in goals and points in the WCC.

Leggett Sets AF Freshman Scoring Mark
Tom Leggett surpassed the 100 point mark against Brown, setting a new freshman scoring record at Air Force and became the first-ever freshman at Air Force to surpass the 100 point mark. He currently leads the WCC with 110 goals and 138 points. He is third in the nation in goals scored and fourth in total points.

Most Goals In A Season at Air Force
1. Grant Snyder, 2022 - 123
2. Ben Phillips, 1972 - 120
3. Tom Leggett, 2023 - 110

Most Points In A Season at Air Force
1. Grant Snyder, 2022 - 181
2. Ian Christie, 2022 - 170
3. Ben Phillips, 1972 - 145
4. Tom Leggett, 2023 - 138

Christie First At Air Force To Reach 200 Assists
Senior Ian Christie recorded his 200th career assist in the win against Bucknell. He currently has 211 career assists, which is 75 more than second place.

Most Career Assists at Air Force
1. Ian Christie 2020-23 211
2. David Chaney 1988-91 136
3. Alex Churnside 2006-09 131

Most Career Points at Air Force
1. Ben Phillips 1971-74 442
2. Grant Snyder 2019-22 399
3. Ian Christie 2020-23 350

NCAA Rankings
Goals
Tom Leggett 3rd/110

Points
Tom Leggett 4th/138

Assists
Ian Christie   4th/56

Steals
Jack Richards   6th/44
Ian Christie   10th/41

WCC Rankings
Goals
Tom Leggett 1st/110
Jack Richards 4th/58

Assists
Ian Christie 2nd/56

Points
Tom Leggett 1st/138
Jack Richards 9th/87

Field Blocks
Ian Christie 3rd/11

Sprint Wins
Jacob Yi       2nd/27
Ian Christie   4th/21

Steals
Jack Richards   1st/44
Ian Christie   2nd/41

Saves
Liam Markus 5th/130
Luca Smith 7th/120

Goals Against Average
Luca Smith   2nd/11.10
Liam Markus   5th/12.60

Team Captains: Air Force's team captains for the 2023 season are senior Ian Christie and junior Kaito Ham.

Inaugural season in WCC: Air Force joins the West Coast Conference in 2023, the first year the conference is sponsoring men's water polo. The Falcons join WCC member institutions, Loyola Marymount, Pacific, Pepperdine and Santa Clara, along with fellow affiliate members California Baptist and San Jose State. The Falcons previously played in the Western Water Polo Association from 1987-2022.

(RV) Air Force Heads To WCC Men’s Water Polo Championships

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ian Christie

Kaito Ham

Tom Leggett

Liam Markus

Jack Richards

Luca Smith

Grant Snyder

Jacob Yi

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