RIVERSIDE, Calif. — No. 8 Pepperdine water polo (9-7, 0-1 WCC) fell by a score of 15-10 at No. 15 California Baptist (16-7, 1-0 WCC) on Thursday night from Lancer Aquatics Center.

The Waves fell behind early and were unable to mount a comeback as the Lancers held a three-plus goal lead from the first quarter to the final whistle.

Pepperdine was led by Erik Ionescu, who scored five times to go along with an assist. Reed Pantaleon and Dane Howell each netted a pair of goals while Brian Barnuevo added one to his ledger.

The Lancers even up the season series with the Waves, as Pepperdine had previously collected a neutral site win against CBU at the MPSF Invite in September. 

"We had our opportunities to win this game and did not capitalize on them," said head coach Merrill Moses. "We went down early and unfortunately could never cut into their lead. This is a tough loss, but we will learn from our mistakes and look forward to playing in front of our home crowd on Sunday."

The home side got out to a quick start, scoring twice in the opening 80 seconds to take a two-goal lead. Ionescu answered with a five-meter penalty goal, as that was the lone offense for Pepperdine in the first period.

CBU ended the first frame with three unanswered goals, with two coming on the power play to take a 5-1 lead into the second.

The teams traded goals in the second, with Pantaleon and Barnuevo getting on the scoresheet for the Waves, as a late power play goal from the Lancers made it an 8-3 advantage at the half.

Pepperdine began the second half with a goal in transition from Howell followed by another tally from Pantaleon, cutting the CBU lead down to three. The Lancers answered back on the next possession with a five-meter penalty conversion, and scored again to push the lead back to five.

Ionescu was able to get two more goals for the Waves at the end of the third on the power play, but the Lancers took a 12-7 lead into the fourth.

CBU found three more goals in the fourth, pushing the lead to 15-8 heading into the final 90 seconds. Ionescu got a pair on the Waves' final two possessions, bringing the final score to 15-10.

Pepperdine outshot the Lancers 35-29 overall, but held a .286 shot-percentage compared to .517 for the home side.

Max Smirnov and Jaxon Leach split time in the cage for the Waves, combining for seven saves.

Game Notes

• Erik Ionescu led the Waves with five goals to go along with an assist and a steal.
• Ionescu has logged multiple goals in five straight contests.
• Dane Howell scored a pair of goals while recording two steals.
• Howell has now recorded multiple goals in 12 of 16 games this season.
• Reed Pantaleon deposited a pair of goals for the Waves.
• It marked the fourth multi-goal effort of the campaign for Pantaleon.
• Brian Barneuvo added his 16th goal of the season.
• Max Smirnov made five saves in goal for the Waves with Jaxon Leach adding a pair in the fourth period.
• Owen Tift logged a pair of assists, bringing his season total to 14 in 12 appearances.
• The Waves went 5-for-12 on the power play in the game.
• Pepperdine moves to 14-2 in the all-time series against the Lancers.

Pepperdine will return home for the first time in over a month on Sunday, hosting No. 13 Princeton at 1:30 p.m. 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.

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