MALIBU, Calif. — No. 8 Pepperdine water polo (11-8, 1-2 WCC) earned its first conference victory of the season with an 18-14 win over Air Force (15-10, 0-4 WCC) on Sunday afternoon from Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool.
Dane Howell led the Waves with a career-high six goals while Jon Carcarey had a career-high five assists.
Matty Walsh netted a hat trick in the winning effort with Charles Warmington added four assists in an all-around team effort for the Waves.
The Waves were consistent offensively throughout the game, scoring five goals in three separate periods.
"I'm very proud of the team on getting our first conference game win of the season," said head coach Merrill Moses. "We had a good offensive performance, but had some defensive lapses which led to them scoring easy goals. We will continue to work hard on our defense so we will be at our strongest in our conference tournament."
The Waves jumped ahead early with Walsh finding the back of the cage twice in the opening frame to go along with scores from Howell, Sandor Gal and Owen Tift. Air Force's Tom Leggett kept the Falcons in the game early on, scoring four times in the opening frame as Pepperdine led 5-4 through one.
Pepperdine continued its offensive prowess with Erik Ionescu and Max Burstein getting on the scoresheet, as the Waves eventually had nine unique goalscorers on the afternoon. Walsh picked up his hat trick soon after as he continued to dominate the game at center, while Howell converted a late five-meter penalty which put Pepperdine ahead 10-7 at halftime.
The Waves would not be outscored in any period, as the third period was three goals apiece for the two sides, with Pepperdine's all coming in a 95 second flurry from Brian Barnuevo, Reed Pantaleon and Tift. Air Force's three tallies came on a five-meter and two extra-man opportunities, as the Waves six-on-six defense allowed just one goal in the second half.
Howell came alive in the fourth period to ice the game, scoring four times in the final six minutes to bring Pepperdine's goal total to 18 for the game. Carcarey added a late goal as well after dishing out five assists on the afternoon.
Max Smirnov made 12 stops in the cage for Pepperdine, as the Waves outshot the Falcons 45-36 on the day.
Game Notes
- Dane Howell scored a career-high six goals to lead the Waves.
- Jon Carcarey contributed a career-best five assists while scoring a goal.
- Matty Walsh secured his seventh three-plus goal effort of the season with a hat trick.
- Sandor Gal continued to contribute offensively with two goals and an assist to go along with two steals.
- Charles Warmington added a career-high four points with four assists on the afternoon.
- Owen Tift deposited a pair of goals to go along with an assist, steal and field block.
- Max Smirnov logged 12 saves to earn the win in the cage for Pepperdine.
- The Waves improve to 4-2 this season at home.
- Pepperdine is now 48-4 all-time against Air Force.
The Waves will return on Friday for a road WCC matchup at No. 8 San Jose State on Friday at noon on ESPN+.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WATER POLO
Pepperdine water polo has seen success spanning decades under Terry Schroeder who gave the reins to Merrill Moses following the 2023 season. Highlighted by its national championship in 1997 with Moses as the starting goalie, the Waves have reached the NCAA Tournament on 13 occasions and recently won the inaugural WCC Regular Season Championship in 2023. Overall, the program has seen 60 athletes garner All-American honors while boasting a winning record in 36 of 50 seasons.
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