First introduced in 1994 as an intercollegiate sport for women, the Tigers wasted little time clawing their way to the top. Building on an Occidental water polo tradition dating back to 1926, the Tigers have finished in the top 10 nationally among Division III teams for the past 12 years, bringing home a national championship in 2000 and a long list of All-American, Academic All-American and All-Conference player honors.

As an NCAA Division III college, Oxy competes in the highly competitive Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). As SCIAC members, the Tigers are eligible to compete in the Collegiate III National Tournament. Under a new format established in 2005 five teams -- including the champion of the SCIAC conference -- are given automatic bids to the NCAA Championship Tournament. With this opportunity to contend for a national title, the Tigers compete at the highest level of the sport, with regularly scheduled opponents including other Division III colleges as well as Division I and II schools such as UCLA, San Diego State, Bucknell, Maryland, Santa Clara, Marist, and Sonoma St. among others.