The Olympic Club Announces Men's Cutino Award Finalists; Women's Finalists To Come Following Season

San Francisco, CA - May 4 - The Olympic Club has announced the men's finalists for the Peter J. Cutino Award, an iconic honor in NCAA water polo to recognize the best men's and women's players each year. The men's finalists are Nikolaos Papanikolaou (Cal), Jake Ehrhardt (USC), and Reuel D'Souza (Pacific). The women's finalists will be announced following the conclusion of the women's season.

Nikolaos Papanikolaou led Cal to a second straight national championship and hopes to cap off an incredible stretch with a second consecutive Cutino Award as well. Papanikolaou was the top scorer for the Bears with 62 goals over 25 games (23-2).

Jake Ehrhardt helped USC reach the national championship game for the third season in a row. Ehrhardt tallied 55 goals with 19 multiple-goal games, including all three games of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Tournament, the NCAA Semifinal versus UCLA, and the NCAA Championship against Cal. His 179 career goals are good for sixth all-time in school history.

Reuel D'Souza racked up 54 goals, 46 assists, 12 steals, 10 field blocks, and 8 drawn exclusions for University of the Pacific. D'Souza was named Golden Coast Conference (GCC) All-Conference First-Team, GCC All-Tournament Team, and NCAA All-Tournament Second-Team.

The Cutino Awards will take place on the evening of Saturday, June 3rd at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. The ceremony will be live-streamed free of charge courtesy of USA Water Polo at YouTube.com/USAWP. The broadcast will feature interviews with finalists, athletes, coaches plus the Cutino Award ceremony in its entirety. Those interested in attending the awards can register by clicking here.

Established in 1999 by The Olympic Club, the Cutino Award is given annually to the top men's and women's NCAA Division I water polo players as voted on by coaches from across the country. The namesake of the award is a legend in United States water polo history, with eight NCAA titles as head coach at Cal. The Olympic Club has a long and distinguished competitive water polo history, a tradition that continues today in the pool with some of the best age-group teams in the world.

ABOUT THE OLYMPIC CLUB
Founded in 1860, The Olympic Club enjoys the distinction of being among the oldest athletic clubs in America. Since its birth, The Olympic Club has fostered amateur athletics in San Francisco. The Winged "O" currently fields teams in 17 sports. Additionally, The Olympic Club has hosted five U.S. Opens, and looks forward to hosting the 2028 PGA Championship and 2032 Ryder Cup at its world-class Lakeside Clubhouse golf courses.