MALIBU, Calif. — No. 8 Pepperdine water polo (9-6) opens up its West Coast Conference (WCC) slate at No. 15 Cal Baptist (15-7) on Thursday night. The game is set for 5:30 p.m. from Lancer Aquatics Center in Riverside, Calif.
The contest can be streamed live on
ESPN+ with live stats available on the
FOSH.
The Waves enter conference play ranked eighth in the country, and take on the defending WCC Champion Lancers who come in ranked fifteenth. The two sides met earlier in the season at the MPSF Invite, with Pepperdine collecting a 17-10 victory at USC against the Lancers.
LAST TIME OUT
- The Waves defeated No. 9 Long Beach State on the road in sudden death overtime by a score of 17-16.
- Erik Ionescu scored the game-winning goal to give the Waves the victory 45 seconds into the sudden death period.
- Adam Csapo made his season debut and netted four goals.
- Max Smirnov made 15 saves in the cage to earn the victory.
GAME NOTES
- Pepperdine moved up two spots in this week's CWPA poll, with No. 8 being the highest the Waves have come in since the preseason poll.
- The Waves have a 10-2 all-time record in WCC regular season fixtures.
- Pepperdine is 2-1 in overtime contests this season including 2-0 in sudden death periods.
- Preseason All-WCC selection Adam Csapo scored four goals in his season debut last Friday at No. 9 LBSU.
- Sandor Gal has led the Waves with 49 points this season through 20 goals and 29 assists.
- Erik Ionescu has also posted 20-plus goals and assists on the campaign and is second on the Waves with 43 points.
- Jon Carcarey scored a season-high four goals and posted six points with two steals and a field block at No. 9 LBSU on Friday.
- Carcarey was named to the Cutino Award Watch List earlier this season.
- Matty Walsh has scored multiple goals in four straight games and ranks second on the Waves with 30 goals.
- Dane Howell leads the team with 31 goals and has scored multiple times in 11 contests.
- Jackson Benners is one of four Waves with double-digit assists (16) and steals (11) this season.
- Max Smirnov has registered a .463 save-percentage and 12.57 GAA in 11 games this season.
- Smirnov has had a dozen or more saves in four straight games.
- Brian Barnuevo has paced the freshman class with 15 goals and 12 assists on the season.
- The Waves enter play 2-3 in true road games.
SERIES HISTORY
- The Waves have an all-time record of 14-1 against Cal Baptist.
- This includes a 2-1 mark on the road in the series.
- Pepperdine posted a 17-10 victory this season at a neutral site, and won both matchups in 2024.
- The Lancers lone victory in the series came in the 2023 WCC Tournament.
SCOUTING THE LANCERS
- Cal Baptist enters play with a 15-7 overall record and are currently riding a five-game winning streak.
- The Lancers enter play ranked No. 15 in the CWPA poll.
- Sophomore Andrea Nuzzo has led the way this season with 60 goals and 80 points.
- The Lancers have an even goal differential on the season, scoring and allowing 14.9 goals per game.
The Waves will head home to host No. 13 Princeton next, with opening sprint set for 1:30 p.m. on Sunday from
Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool.
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.
TICKETS
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