MALIBU, Calif. — No. 11 Pepperdine water polo (8-4) will head up the coast for a pair of road contests at No. 2 Cal (10-1) and No. 4 Stanford (6-2) this weekend.

The Waves will first take on Cal at 1 p.m. on Saturday before a 1 p.m. fixture on Sunday at Stanford.

Live stats for both games will be available on 6-8sports with streaming for the Cal fixture on overnght. The Stanford contest will not have a live stream available.

"The team has been training extremely hard to get prepared for the games this weekend," said head coach Merrill Moses. "Cal and Stanford are two of the top four teams in the country and we are excited to travel up north to play two great opponents."

LAST TIME OUT

• The Waves won three straight games to end the MPSF Invite with a 3-1 mark.
• Pepperdine took down No. 16 Cal Baptist, Redlands and No. 9 Princeton to finish in ninth place in the tournament.
• Brian Barnuevo led the Waves with nine goals and six assists for the tournament while Matty Walsh deposited eight goals along with four assists.
• Max Smirnov picked up two wins in the cage, making 35 saves in three starts.

GAME NOTES

• The Waves enter play on a season-best three-game winning streak.
• Jon Carcarey was one of 20 athletes named to the Cutino Award Watch List earlier this week.
• The Cutino Award is given annually to the top Division I collegiate water polo athlete.
• Brian Barneuvo was named WCC Newcomer of the Week for the first time this past weekend.
• Barnuevo had five goals and two assists in the win over No. 16 Cal Baptist before registering four points to help defeat No. 9 Princeton.
• Sandor Gal leads the Waves with 37 points through 17 goals and 20 assists this season.
• Dane Howell has paced the offense with 26 goals to this point in the campaign.
• Matty Walsh has been a force at center for Pepperdine, totaling 22 goals and four assists.
• Owen Tift returned from injury at the MPSF Invite to record six goals and eight assists across four appearances.
• Jackson Benners ranks fourth on the team with 14 assists while adding six steals.
• The Waves carry a 1-1 record in true road games into the weekend.
• Pepperdine is 5-4 in games against ranked opponents this season.

SERIES HISTORY

• The Waves have a 17-62-1 record all-time against Cal.
• Pepperdine picked up a 21-20 victory over Cal in 2024 in overtime with Carcarey netting the game-winner.
• Stanford leads the all-time series with the Waves 84-12.
• The Waves have won twice in 31 opportunities on the road against the Cardinal.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT

• The No. 2 Cal Bears saw their ten-game winning streak to begin the season snapped by No. 1 UCLA in the MPSF Invite Championship on Sunday.
• Freshman Beso Akhvlediani has paced the Bears with 31 goals and 47 points this season.
• No. 4 Stanford began the season 6-0 before falling to No. 1 UCLA and then-No.2 USC at the MPSF Invite.
• The Cardinal return All-American goalie West Temkin who tabbed 41 saves at the MPSF Invite.

The Waves will stay on the road next to take on No. 9 Long Beach State at 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 3. 

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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