NEWS

While the first day of September is typically a reminder that autumn is around the corner, the date also marks the beginning of the Intercollegiate/Interscholastic (I/I) season. Teams square off throughout the fall and spring to be awarded a regular season championship, while keeping their eyes on the spring tournament season and their hopes set on hoisting one of the four National Championship trophies.

Teams that play at least four games against three different opponents in their division and region can qualify to be a regular season champion. Similar to the regular seasons of Interscholastic and Intercollegiate sports conferences, the team with the best win/loss record is deemed the season champion. Awards are provided to each divisional in every region at the end of the I/I tournament season.

Competition heats up in February, as teams begin the trek towards their respective National Championships. Every team is assigned to a Preliminary or Regional tournament, based on their regular season record. Each tournament is single elimination, with the exception of round-robin formats, and each tournament champion moves on to the subsequent tournament, culminating at the division's National Championship.

Intercollegiate men began competing in 1922, with Princeton bringing home the John R. Townsend Intercollegiate Polo Trophy in the inaugural tournament. Yale University claims the most titles, with 19 total. The Texas A&M University Aggies bested all teams in 2016 for their ninth championship.

Intercollegiate women took to the stage in 1976 with Yale University claiming the first title and the Katydid Farm Women's Intercollegiate Polo Trophy. The women of Cornell University hold the record for titles at 15, including the Big Red's 2016 championship run.

The Interscholastic division, now referred to as the "open" division, joined the competition in 1928, when Manluis School raised the George C. Sherman Interscholastic Polo Trophy. Culver Military Academy owns the rights to twelve championships. In 2016 Prestonwood Polo Club topped the Open Division for the first time.

An all-girls tournament (the Girls' division) was sanctioned in 1991, when the ladies of Santa Ynez bested the competition and took home the Dan and Julie Colhoun Interscholastic Girls' Trophy. Garrison Forest School has thirteen titles to their name. The Maryland Polo Club topped all teams in 2016 and extended their hold on the trophy to a hat trick of three straight years and a total of seven titles.

If you are interested in joining the competition, contact I/I Program Director Amy Fraser (afraser@uspolo.org) or find more information on the Intercollegiate/Interscholastic pages at uspolo.org.

The mission of the Intercollegiate/Interscholastic (I/I) committee of the United States Polo Association (USPA) is to promote and grow the sport of polo by providing maximum exposure to the sport; recruiting collegiate and scholastic institutions; coordinating activities of member schools and players; providing for organized competition including sponsoring and administering regional and national tournaments with an emphasis on sportsmanship, fairness, and safety; and by effectively utilizing funding for the benefit of I/I activities.