March 19, 2007

BREA, CALIF. - BREA, CALIF. - Proving they are just as talented in the classroom as in the pool, three members of Cal's 2006 NCAA championship squad - junior Michael Sharf and seniors Andrija Vasiljevic and Brian Bacharach - were selected 2006 Academic All-Americans by the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches.

Sharf (3.51 business administration), Vasiljevic (3.50 interdisciplinary studies) and Bacharach (3.42 psychology) were all named to the All-American Superior Class with GPAs between 3.40 and 3.70. Earlier, the three players were selected to the 2006 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation All-Academic team.

"With nine all-conference academic selections and now three Academic All-Americans, we are obviously very proud of what our team was able to accomplish in 2006," said Cal coach Kirk Everist, who guided the Golden Bears to the program's 12th NCAA title this past fall. "Mike, Andrija and Brian each earned All-America honors in and out of the pool this year and that is a great testimony to their dedication and work-ethic."

Besides standing out in the academic arena, Sharf was an ACWPC honorable mention All-American, and was the Bears' second-leading scorer with 48 goals. Vasiljevic, who scored 40 goals this season, concluded his career with 144 goals and was tabbed as a third-team All-American, NCAA Tournament first team and second-team All-MPSF. Bacharach, a two-year team captain, was also an honorable mention All-American and NCAA Tournament second team, scoring a team-high two goals against USC in the NCAA Championship. He scored 46 goals in 2006 and finished his career with 141 goals.

"Managing a strenuous course load while participating in an intercollegiate sport is a very challenging task," said ACWPC Executive Director, Mike Lewis. "We are proud to see such a large number of athletes (164) meet the criteria of a GPA of 3.2 and above. This is emblematic of water polo's tradition of supporting both academic and athletic prowess."

Under the direction Everist, Cal finished the 2006 campaign 31-4, winning the MPSF title with a 6-5 victory over USC in Irvine on Nov. 26. Then on Dec. 3 at Loyola Marymount, the Bears again upended the Trojans with a thrilling 7-6 win in the national title match on a last second shot by junior Jeff Tyrrell to give Cal its NCAA-record 12th national crown.