SANTA CLARA, Calif. — No. 9 Pepperdine water polo (12-10, 1-3 WCC) fell in a close battle to No. 19 Harvard (15-7, 5-0 NWPC) by a score of 16-15 before taking down UC Merced (4-14, 0-3 WWPA) 25-9 at the Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament hosted by Santa Clara on Saturday.
 
Erik Ionescu led the way for the Waves with four goals in each game, as the matchup with Harvard came down to the closing minutes with the Crimson holding strong defensively to close the game.
 
The 25 goals matched a season-high for the Waves against the Bobcats, as Cade Anderton led the way with a career-high six tallies. Alex Piccin also recorded a career-best five points in the effort with two goals and three assists.

"Today was a tough loss versus Harvard," said head coach Merrill Moses "We gave them too many man-up opportunities that they capitalized on. We had a lead in the fourth quarter and unfortunately made some critical defensive errors that led to them winning the game. It was good to see the team bounce back from the loss with a strong showing versus UC Merced."
 
No. 19 Harvard 16, No. 9 Pepperdine 15
After a first period on Friday that saw just two goals between the Waves and San Jose State, the goals came early and often against the Crimson.
 
Five different Waves found the back of the cage in the opening frame, as Pepperdine posted six goals with two coming from Erik Ionescu. Harvard was able to find its rhythm early offensively as well, as the Waves held a 6-5 lead through one.
 
After the Crimson tied the score at seven goals apiece with 5:34 remaining in the second, the Waves ended the half on a 3-0 run with goals from Ionescu, Sandor Gal and Jackson Benners making it a 10-7 lead at the half.
 
The Waves weathered an early comeback in the third from the Crimson which saw them pull back within a goal at 11-10 midway through the period. Jon Carcarey answered with a goal, as Cade Anderton and Howell closed the frame with two goals and the Waves took a 14-11 lead into the fourth.
 
After an Ionescu five-meter conversion with 6:16 remaining to put Pepperdine ahead 15-12, the Crimson got multiple stops in a row while converting on the offensive end, eventually tying the game at 15 with 4:42 to play.
 
The Waves were unable to break through offensively in the closing minutes, eventually conceding a five-meter penalty with 2:36 remaining, which proved to be the game-winner as Harvard came away with a 16-15 comeback victory.
 
The Waves outshot the Crimson 35-28 for the game, with Pepperdine being excluded 15 times compared to just five for Harvard.
 
No. 9 Pepperdine 25, UC Merced 9
The Waves notched the first two goals of the game after the teams traded stops through the opening 3:55, as Ionescu and Walsh found the back of the net to put Pepperdine ahead early. The Bobcats scored once in the opening frame on the power play, as Ionescu and Adam Blum gave Pepperdine a 4-1 lead heading into the second.
 
Pepperdine pushed its lead to five in the second frame, with the Waves continuing to spread the scoring with Howell and Anderton getting on the scoresheet. The Bobcats scored thrice to hang around, making it a 9-4 game at halftime.
 
After UC Merced opened the second half with a goal, the Waves blew the game open with a furious 7-0 run which quickly pushed the game to a 16-5 scoreline. Pepperdine scored nine goals in the quarter in total, with Anderton and Piccin each notching a pair as the Waves built a comfortable lead heading into the fourth.
 
Max Burstein became the tenth Wave to find the scoresheet in the fourth, as the Waves continued to extend the lead, eventually reaching 20 goals. The final two minutes saw Anderton put in two more, giving him a career-best six tallies, with Charles Warmington notching his second of the game which brought the final scoreline to 25-9.
 
The Waves converted six-of-11 opportunities with the extra man in the game, while outshooting the Bobcats 45-21.
 
Game Notes

• Erik Ionescu scored four goals in each game, totaling 11 points on the day.
• Cade Anderton netted a career-high six goals and eight points against UC Merced while adding a goal versus Harvard.
• Sandor Gal contributed two goals in each game while totaling five assists on the day.
• Charles Warmington totaled a season-high two goals against UC Merced while adding an assist.
• Matty Walsh registered six goals on the day including four in the effort against Harvard.
• Zach Cwiertnia logged eight saves to earn the victory in the cage in game two.
• Alex Piccin recorded a career-high five points with two goals and three assists against UC Merced. 

The Waves return home for a pair of games on the weekend, beginning with a matchup on Saturday at 1 p.m. against No. 16 UC Irvine.

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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