| NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship | |
| Year: | 1979 |
| Dates: | December 1979 |
| Num Teams: | 8 |
| Winners: | UC Santa Barbara (1st title) |
| Second: | UCLA (6th title game) |
| Third: | Stanford |
| Fourth: | California |
| Matches: | 12 |
| Goals: | 246 |
| Attendance: | 2542 |
| Scoring Leader: | Scott Schulte, Bucknell (11) |
| Award: | Greg Boyer, UCSB |
| Prev Season: | 1978 |
| Next Season: | 1980 |
The 1979 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship was the 11th annual NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship to determine the national champion of NCAA men's college water polo. Tournament matches were played at the Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach, California during December 1979.[1]
UC Santa Barbara defeated UCLA in the final, 11–3, to win their first national title.
Greg Boyer from UC Santa Barbara was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament. An All-Tournament Team, consisting of seven players, was also named. For the third consecutive year, the tournament's leading scorer was Scott Schulte from Bucknell (11 goals).
Since there has only ever been one single national championship for water polo, all NCAA men's water polo programs (whether from Division I, Division II, or Division III) were eligible. A total of 8 teams were invited to contest this championship.
| Team | Appearance | Previous | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force | 3rd | 1978 | |
| Brown | 2nd | 1977 | |
| Bucknell | 3rd | 1978 | |
| California | 7th | 1978 | |
| Loyola–Chicago | 5th | 1978 | |
| Stanford | 7th | 1978 | |
| UCLA | 9th | 1976 | |
| UC Santa Barbara | 7th | 1976 |