Photo by: Robert Edwards/klcfotos
11/20/2019 3:57 PM | Men's Water Polo
Nikolaos Papanikolaou Named MPSF Newcomer Of The Year
WOODLAND, Calif. – California freshman Nikolaos Papanikolaou highlighted a group of five Golden Bears who were named to the All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Teams on Wednesday afternoon, as he was tabbed as the league's Newcomer of the Year and a First Team selection.
Cal team captain and redshirt senior Jordan Hoover joined Papanikolaou on the All-MPSF First Team. The three other Bears who earned All-MPSF honors included senior Safak Simsek (Second Team), junior Nikos Delagrammatikas (Honorable Mention) and freshman Adrian Weinberg (Honorable Mention).
Papanikolaou is Cal's fourth MPSF Newcomer of the Year, joining former standouts Johnny Hooper (2015), Luca Cupido (2014) and Spencer Warden (2006). The Athens, Greece, native was the only freshman to be named to either of the first or second all-conference teams this year. Papanikolaou ranked fourth among MPSF players with 43 goals, which led all freshmen. He also tallied 65 drawn exclusions and was a two-time MPSF Newcomer of the Week (Nov. 18, Sept. 30).
Hoover netted 40 goals and drew 49 exclusions as he put together the best statistical season of his career. He had 14 multi-goal performances, including seven games with three goals or more. The first-team nod was the second All-MPSF honor of Hoover's career; he earned an honorable mention in 2018.
Simsek was named to the All-MPSF Second Team for the second consecutive year after scoring a team-leading 46 goals this fall. The lefty dished out 18 assists for 64 total points and added nine steals and five field blocks. He scored four goals on five occasions and was held scoreless in just two of 22 matches.
Delagrammatikas proved to be one of Cal's most well-rounded players, logging substantial minutes in all 22 regular season matches. The junior from Athens, Greece, totaled 20 points (12 goals, eight assists) while drawing 14 exclusions and recording nine steals and six field blocks. He was also named an All-MPSF Honorable Mention last season.
Weinberg finished the regular season with 185 saves, the second most among MPSF goalkeepers. The freshman owned a .497 save percentage and averaged 9.25 saves per game over 20 appearances, including 19 starts. Weinberg was named MPSF Newcomer of the Week once and totaled 10 or more saves nine times.
Papanikolaou and Weinberg were two of just four freshmen to earn All-MPSF honors. The Bears' five selections were the fourth most among all conference schools behind Stanford's seven and USC and UCLA's six apiece. Stanford center Ben Hallock repeated as Player of the Year and the Cardinal's John Vargas was named Coach of the Year.
ALL-MPSF INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Player of the Year: Ben Hallock, Stanford (R-Jr., Center)
Newcomer of the Year: Nikolaos Papanikolaou, Cal (Fr., Center)
Coach of the Year: John Vargas, Stanford
ALL-MPSF FIRST TEAM
ALL-MPSF SECOND TEAM
ALL-MPSF HONORABLE MENTION
% – Four-Time All-MPSF Selection
# – Three-Time All-MPSF Selection
^ – Two-Time All-MPSF Selection
STAY POSTED
For complete coverage of Cal men's water polo, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalWaterPolo), Instagram (@CalMWaterPolo) and Facebook (Facebook.com/Cal-Mens-Water-Polo-Fan-Page).
Cal team captain and redshirt senior Jordan Hoover joined Papanikolaou on the All-MPSF First Team. The three other Bears who earned All-MPSF honors included senior Safak Simsek (Second Team), junior Nikos Delagrammatikas (Honorable Mention) and freshman Adrian Weinberg (Honorable Mention).
Papanikolaou is Cal's fourth MPSF Newcomer of the Year, joining former standouts Johnny Hooper (2015), Luca Cupido (2014) and Spencer Warden (2006). The Athens, Greece, native was the only freshman to be named to either of the first or second all-conference teams this year. Papanikolaou ranked fourth among MPSF players with 43 goals, which led all freshmen. He also tallied 65 drawn exclusions and was a two-time MPSF Newcomer of the Week (Nov. 18, Sept. 30).
Hoover netted 40 goals and drew 49 exclusions as he put together the best statistical season of his career. He had 14 multi-goal performances, including seven games with three goals or more. The first-team nod was the second All-MPSF honor of Hoover's career; he earned an honorable mention in 2018.
Simsek was named to the All-MPSF Second Team for the second consecutive year after scoring a team-leading 46 goals this fall. The lefty dished out 18 assists for 64 total points and added nine steals and five field blocks. He scored four goals on five occasions and was held scoreless in just two of 22 matches.
Delagrammatikas proved to be one of Cal's most well-rounded players, logging substantial minutes in all 22 regular season matches. The junior from Athens, Greece, totaled 20 points (12 goals, eight assists) while drawing 14 exclusions and recording nine steals and six field blocks. He was also named an All-MPSF Honorable Mention last season.
Weinberg finished the regular season with 185 saves, the second most among MPSF goalkeepers. The freshman owned a .497 save percentage and averaged 9.25 saves per game over 20 appearances, including 19 starts. Weinberg was named MPSF Newcomer of the Week once and totaled 10 or more saves nine times.
Papanikolaou and Weinberg were two of just four freshmen to earn All-MPSF honors. The Bears' five selections were the fourth most among all conference schools behind Stanford's seven and USC and UCLA's six apiece. Stanford center Ben Hallock repeated as Player of the Year and the Cardinal's John Vargas was named Coach of the Year.
ALL-MPSF INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Player of the Year: Ben Hallock, Stanford (R-Jr., Center)
Newcomer of the Year: Nikolaos Papanikolaou, Cal (Fr., Center)
Coach of the Year: John Vargas, Stanford
ALL-MPSF FIRST TEAM
| NAME | YR. | POS. | SCHOOL |
| Ben Hallock # | R-Jr. | Center | Stanford |
| Hannes Daube ^ | So. | Driver | USC |
| Ashworth Molthen | So. | Attacker | UCLA |
| Jacob Mercep ^ | Jr. | Driver | USC |
| Bennett Williams # | Sr. | Attacker | Stanford |
| Felix Brozyna-Vilim | Jr. | Center | UCLA |
| Jordan Hoover ^ | R-Sr. | Center | Cal |
| Nikolaos Papanikolaou | Fr. | Center | Cal |
| Tyler Abramson ^ | Jr. | Attacker | Stanford |
| Andrew Chun | Jr. | Goalkeeper | Stanford |
ALL-MPSF SECOND TEAM
| NAME | YR. | POS. | SCHOOL |
| Jake Ehrhardt | So. | 2-Meter | USC |
| Jake Cavano ^ | So. | Attacker | UCLA |
| AJ Rossman | So. | Center | Stanford |
| Marin Dasic # | Sr. | Driver | USC |
| Safak Simsek ^ | Sr. | Attacker | Cal |
| Nicolas Saveljic # | Jr. | Attacker | UCLA |
| Alex Wolf # | R-Sr. | Goalkeeper | UCLA |
ALL-MPSF HONORABLE MENTION
| NAME | YR. | POS. | SCHOOL |
| Matt Maier % | Sr. | 2-Meter | USC |
| Tommy Gruwell | Fr. | Attacker | UCLA |
| Sam Slobodien | R-Sr. | 2-Meter | USC |
| Dylan Woodhead | Sr. | Utility | Stanford |
| Max Wade | Fr. | Attacker | Austin College |
| Nikos Delagrammatikas ^ | Jr. | 2-Meter | Cal |
| Quinn Woodhead | So. | Utility | Stanford |
| Adrian Weinberg | Fr. | Goalkeeper | Cal |
| Matt Olimski ^ | Jr. | Goalkeeper | Penn St. Behrend |
% – Four-Time All-MPSF Selection
# – Three-Time All-MPSF Selection
^ – Two-Time All-MPSF Selection
STAY POSTED
For complete coverage of Cal men's water polo, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalWaterPolo), Instagram (@CalMWaterPolo) and Facebook (Facebook.com/Cal-Mens-Water-Polo-Fan-Page).
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