Buzzer-Beater Lifts No. 14 Water Polo Past Air Force in Overtime

Saturday, October 10

USAF Academy, CO

12:00 PM MT / 11:00 AM PT

Pepperdine University

7-10, 1-1WCC

Air Force

15-9, 0-1WCC

Team	1	2	3	4	OT	OT	Final F
Pepperdine	4	1	6	2	1	2	16
Air Force	1	3	4	5	1	1	15

Buzzer-Beater Lifts No. 14 Water Polo Past Air Force in Overtime

10/10/2026 4:54:00 PM | Men's Water Polo

Box Score

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — No. 14 Pepperdine water polo (7-10, 1-1 WCC) secured a thrilling 16-15 overtime victory at Air Force (15-9, 0-1 WCC) Saturday afternoon from Cadet Natatorium. Max Smirnov scored a buzzer-beating goal with a last-second heave the full length of the pool to end the game before sudden death overtime.

Pepperdine trailed 15-14 with under 10 seconds remaining in overtime, as Tyce di Pretoro tied the game with five seconds left. Regaining possession, Air Force put a shot on goal in the closing seconds, with Smirnov making the stop and quickly getting off a shot on the empty Falcons' goal before the final buzzer sounded, giving the Waves an improbable last-second victory.

Milo Joseph had sent the game into overtime with a late goal in regulation, as Joseph finished with a team-high three goals and game-high six drawn exclusions. Erik Ionescu also netted a hat trick for Pepperdine to go along with a field block.

Five Waves scored multiple goals while five Pepperdine players had multiple steals in the contest, with Pepperdine recording a season-best 16 steals as a team. Csanád Bella finished with two goals and four steals, Hunter Danko tallied two goals and two steals, and di Pretoro finished with two goals, two assists, three steals and three field blocks in an all-around effort.

Smirnov finished his day with eight saves in the cage to go along with three steals and the game-winning goal. Pepperdine logged a season-best 10 field blocks as a team, led by Charles Warmington, who finished the day with three blocks and four points.

"We did not play our best water polo today but I am very proud of the team for how they dug deep in elevation and found a way to win," said head coach Merrill Moses. "We had some good runs on offense where we pulled away but have to correct our defensive mistakes which kept Air Force in the game. We're looking forward to continuing our WCC conference play this upcoming weekend with two games at Pepperdine."

The Waves were sound defensively early on, shutting out the Falcons for the opening seven minutes of the contest. Pepperdine was able to build up an early 4-0 advantage, with Ionescu and Joseph beginning the scoring before Bella and Warmington got on the scoresheet. Pepperdine led 4-1 after one period of play.

An early second period goal from Danko brought the lead back to four, but Air Force chipped away to close the half, eventually making it a 5-4 game at the break.

The game of runs continued to start the second half, as Joseph, Bella and Ionescu deposited consecutive goals to put the Waves ahead 8-4. Air Force kept it close entering the fourth, but a last-second goal from Ionescu made it an 11-8 Pepperdine advantage through three periods of play.

Air Force used a 3-0 run to begin the fourth to tie the game up at 11, with Danko netting Pepperdine's first goal of the frame with 2:46 remaining. The Falcons answered with the next two, giving them their first lead of the game at 13-12 with 1:33 remaining. Pepperdine had the answer, with Joseph firing in his third of the game with 1:04 remaining, which ultimately sent the game into overtime.

Jon Carcarey came through with the opening goal in the first overtime frame, which was eventually answered by Tom Leggett of Air Force, bringing the score to 14-14 entering the second overtime period.

It was Leggett again giving the Falcons the lead with 24 seconds left in overtime, setting up Pepperdine with one possession to tie the score. The Waves did just that out of a timeout, with Warmington feeding di Pretoro who secured his second goal of the game with five seconds remaining in the overtime.

With the game destined for sudden death, Smirnov and the Waves capitalized on an empty net for Air Force, who fired in a last second shot on the Pepperdine goalie. Smirnov made the stop, corralled the ball and fired the full length of the pool in the final second, with the ball finding the back of the net to give Pepperdine the miraculous win.

The goal marked Smirnov's first of the season and third of his career. Pepperdine moved to 1-1 in overtime games this season with the victory.

The Waves will return home next weekend to host a pair of conference games. Pepperdine takes on Pacific on Oct. 17 at 1 p.m. before hosting San Jose State on Oct. 18 at 1 p.m.

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 67 athletes garner All-American honors while boasting a winning record in 37 of 51 seasons.

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