Locals to play in NCAA men’s water polo championships

The four-team NCAA men’s water polo championships, contested Saturday and Sunday at USC’s McDonald’s’ Swim Stadium, include a handful of players with local ties.

Top-seeded USC (27-0), the four-time-defending NCAA champion, includes Newport Harbor High product Zach Lucas and former Corona del Mar star Chase Watson.

Lucas, a sophomore driver, has scored 18 goals this season, while Watson, a freshman center, has 10 goals.

Emery Molnar, a freshman out of Corona del Mar, is also listed on the Trojans’ numerical roster, while Ryan Fowler and Park Eddy, both freshmen out of Newport Harbor, are listed on the roster without numbers.

UCLA (27-4) includes junior center Lucas Reynolds, a CdM product who has 30 goals this season, and Anthony Daboub, a Newport Beach resident who played at Mater Dei. Daboub, a freshman defender, has 10 goals this season.

USC plays No. 4-seeded Air Force (19-10) in one semifinal at 4 p.m. Saturday.

UCLA takes on St. Francis College of Brooklyn Heights, N.Y. (16-8) in the other semifinal at 6:12 p.m.

Sunday’s title game is at 6:12 p.m., preceded by the third-place game at 4.

— Barry Faulkner