CWPA Policies and Rules
CWPA
Policies and Rules
Institutions may not reprint any artwork or pictures of any kind, or use any designs published by the CWPA. This includes the CWPA logo, Media Guide artwork, and any material printed by the office.
The Director of Officials will act as a liaison between the coaches and officials. All complaints between these groups should be addressed in writing to his office. The Board of Review and ultimately the Board of Directors will review incidents requiring further action.
Club teams failing to pay their dues by the end of the academic year in which they played will not be scheduled for any future competition until all fees are paid. Hosts are required to follow the crowd control policy established by the membership. Code of Conduct, Disrespect, Brutalities All CWPA officials, athletes and coaches must abide by the Code of Conduct, or risk sanctioning by the league.
All deck coaches (player/coaches are exempt) must observe the following dress code:
Any player committing a brutality foul or any individual receiving a “red card” for disrespect as noted by the official, must sit the following CWPA game. This includes any carryover from the prior season of competition. It is the coach's responsibility to clarify any questionable calls. If the coach fails to determine the nature of the ejection in question and plays the ineligible athlete, the game may be forfeited. Players committing more than one brutality in the same season may be penalized to a greater degree, based on the Board of Director's decision.
The CWPA will use
video to review a fight or brutality under the following conditions. Video may be used in the case of brutalities called and in the circumstance when an alleged incident is missed by the referees, provided a visible injury resulted. An unusual circumstance must surround the brutality before the use of video can be discussed. An unusual circumstance is defined as a brutality that was unique in its severity, or one that injured another player, requiring a decision by the Head Official and the Tournament Committee regarding whether additional sanctions are necessary during the tournament in order to protect the other athletes. The video must be made available to the head referee within five minutes of the game’s conclusion. The head referee in consultation with the tournament committee must make a determination within ten minutes. Unless the video conclusively shows otherwise, the judgment of the officials at the time the incident occurred takes priority in the situation. The head referee, as chair of the tournament committee will be responsible for making the determination regarding whether the video is conclusive. Video submitted to the CWPA office: Video may be used in the case of brutalities called and in the circumstance when an alleged incident is missed by the referees, provided a visible injury resulted. An unusual circumstance must surround the brutality before the use of video can be discussed. An unusual circumstance is defined as a brutality that was unique in its severity, or one that injured another player. All video must be submitted to the office by 5:00 PM EST within two days following the game. For tournaments ending on Sunday, this would mean Tuesday at 5:00 PM EST. Unless the video conclusively shows otherwise, the judgment of the officials at the time the incident occurred takes priority in the situation. The Commissioner, in consultation with the Director of Officials, will be responsible for making the determination regarding whether the video is conclusive. Any observations from the video will then be forwarded to the Board of Review for their recommendations. When possible, the video will be sent digitally to the members of the Board of Review. The first available date of competition is the third weekend in September.
Teams responsible for a no-contest (failure to show up for a game) will be dropped from the remainder of the league schedule and will be immediately removed as a member of the CWPA for a minimum of one year. Teams may appeal this penalty if they feel they had a viable reason. To appeal, teams must file a written statement to the CWPA office within 48 hours of the scheduled event. If the appeal is granted, the team responsible for the no-contest must compensate their opponent for any expenses incurred as a result of the problem and they will lose the opportunity to host the following year. Deadline for notification of withdrawal without penalty is January 1st for women and August 15th for men. Teams considering a no-contest due to a lack of athletes should endeavor to fulfill their commitment by attending the tournament with a partial squad and borrow athletes from opposing teams. In this fashion, the team receives a forfeit without additional penalty.
All competition is governed by the NCAA rules and guidelines. Players must be full-time students at the institution they represent in order to be eligible for CWPA competition. Teams may allow full-time graduate students to play. Only the New York Men’s Division and North Atlantic Men's Division permits full-time staff and professors to participate as athletes. However, these individuals may not compete in the division championship. In the Pacific Coast Men's and Women’s Divisions, no player that has appeared on a varsity water polo roster for more than two years may play for that same school’s club team, regardless of class level (Graduate or Undergraduate). Each participant in the division and national championship tournaments is required to be present and listed on the roster for at least 50% of the regular season games that his/her team competes. An athlete may participate in the aforementioned tournaments with having competed in less than half the regular season games only after successfully appealing the CWPA Board of Directors to show prohibitive extenuating circumstances such as injury, major illness, etc. This rule shall only apply to divisions that have more than one regular season tournament.
Teams MUST HAVE CAPS for each and every player. They MAY NOT exchange numbers during the season. Each player must maintain the same number throughout the season and it must be the same number as listed in the CWPA program unless indicated to the official's desk BEFORE the tournament begins. If a team lacks an adequate number of caps to cover all of the players on their roster, two players may share the same number as long as they designate to the official’s table which athlete is participating upon entry. However, they may not share more than one number during the course of the season.
Institutions fielding more than one team must declare their rosters before the beginning of the first game of the season. Athletes may move from the “B” team to the “A” team but may not move from the “A” team to the “B” team. All athletes are eligible to compete at Nationals should either team qualify.
Teams are required to follow the Pre-game Protocol for all championship events (optional for regular season).:
The following policy does not absolve or prevent a member institution from maintaining its own standards regarding the competitive practices of its water polo team. The issues named herein endeavor to provide specific guidelines for the members, as they pertain to the competition supervised and assigned by the NCAA member conference, Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA).
Player Eligibility
All matters of player eligibility concerning the safe conduct of the game shall be decided by the parameters set forth in the NCAA rules.
Competitive Site
At no time will a contest be conducted if the safety of the athletes cannot be assured, due to the physical conditions of the facility. This includes ensuring appropriate crowd control through the implementation of the approved CWPA crowd control policy. The host representative, supervising officials, and/or coaches may conclude what is unsafe in any circumstance.
Competitive Supervision
All contests must be officiated by two CWPA assigned referees, meeting all of the requirements established in the CWPA Referee's Manual.
All varsity teams must have a designated coach on deck during the course of the game. Should that coach be removed within the context of the rules, the coach must appoint someone in his place. In the event that there is no one available to replace the coach, the official shall make the determination if an unsafe condition exists, preventing the finish of the game. If none exists, the contest may continue to its intended conclusion. All collegiate club teams must designate one individual to act as coach. This individual may be involved in the competition. Should this person be excluded due to an application of the rules, he must determine a replacement.
Medical Supervision
All varsity games must have a trainer available, either at the site, or within direct communication to someone at the site. Direct communication may include telephone or radio contact to medical personnel. The host institution is responsible for supplying this individual. It is recommended but not required for all collegiate club competition to have a trainer available for the duration of the athletic contest.
Travel
Member institutions are responsible for developing their own travel policies.
All CWPA officials, athletes and coaches must abide by the Code of Conduct, or risk sanctioning from the league.
The Director of Officials will act as a liaison between the coaches and officials. All complaints between these groups should be addressed in writing to his office. The Board of Review and ultimately the Board of Directors will review incidents requiring further action.
The Head Referee is responsible for ensuring that the CWPA policies and rules are followed and in the instance that the Commissioner and Director of Officials are unavailable, is the authority for the league to determine a policy dispute. Filing
The coach wishing to protest the game must make a written statement within 15 minutes of the close of the game, outlining the problem. Protests can only pertain to a misapplication of the rules or errors in recording information. They may not refer to judgments made by the officials. Once signed, the head referee will immediately convene the Tournament committee which is comprised of the head referee (chair), the two referees on the game (unless involved in the protest), the two coaches involved in the next game, and the tournament host. One additional non-working official can serve as a replacement for a referee that needs to be disqualified. In addition, the head referee may use his discretion in replacing other members of the Tournament Committee that are either not available, or disqualified due to the protest. The decision made by the Committee is final for the purpose of the tournament. Page 23 of the NCAA rule book also specifies this procedure. Appeals The determination of a protest made following a game may only be appealed under the following circumstances: The protest had to be filed in accordance with NCAA rules. There must be grounds to show that the referees made a significant error in the process of reviewing the protest that prevented a fair conclusion. If the determination of the protest is overturned, the solution to the problem must be reasonably managed or the initial judgment stands, regardless of its fairness. Reasonably managed means:
To appeal the protest, a copy of the protest must be sent to the CWPA office along with a brief explanation regarding why the appeal is warranted, within 48 hours of the conclusion the event. The use of video to help determine a protest is not permitted.
The first available date of competition is the third weekend in September.
All competition is governed by the NCAA rules and guidelines.
Teams MUST HAVE CAPS for each and every player. They MAY NOT exchange numbers during the season. Each player must maintain the same number throughout the season and it must be the same number as listed in the CWPA program unless indicated to the official's desk BEFORE the tournament begins. If a team lacks an adequate number of caps to cover all of the players on their roster, two players may share the same number as long as they designate to the official’s table which athlete is participating upon entry. However, they may not share more than one number during the course of the season.
Institutions may change the competitive schedule on odd numbered years with a simple majority. Changes on even-numbered years require a 75% majority to enact any revision in the format.
All women’s championships are seeded by a poll committee that is comprised of one individual from each region (NY, NE, MS, AL) and the chair, who is selected during the annual meeting by a vote of the eligible coaches.
All hosts must follow the Pre-Game Protocol for all championships and single games.
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