Education
Buckner played water polo at Villa Park High School, where he scored 364 career goals. He was named to the All-American first team twice. In 2004, he was the CIF Division II Player of the Year, Orange County Register Player of the Year, and Century League Most Valuable Player.
Buckner started his college career at the University of California in 2005.
He scored 22 goals that season.
He then transferred to the University of Southern California and did not compete in 2006. In 2007, he scored 24 goals to rank second on the team
In 2008, Buckner scored 42 goals to rank second on the team again.
He helped University of Southern California win the National Collegiate Athletic Association Championship, scoring three goals in the final match against Stanford. He was also named to the All-American first team and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament first team
The following year, Buckner led the Trojans with 44 goals.
He was again named to the All-American first team and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament first team, and University of Southern California repeated as national champions.