No. 16 Water Polo Falls at No. 4 Cal - Pepperdine University Athletics

Friday, October 23

Berkeley, Calif.

1:00 PM

Pepperdine University

8-12, 2-2

California

13-4, 1-2

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Pepperdine	2	3	2	4	11
California	7	5	7	3	22

10/23/2026 4:00:00 PM | Men's Water Polo

Box Score

BERKELEY, Calif. — No. 16 Pepperdine water polo (8-12, 2-2 WCC) was defeated by a score of 22-11 at No. 4 Cal (12-4, 1-2 MPSF) Friday afternoon from Spieker Aquatics Center.

The Waves fell behind early and were unable to mount a comeback against the Bears, who held a 7-2 lead after the first quarter of play.

Milo Joseph had a game-high five goals to lead the Waves, with three coming on the power play. He also drew a team-best five exclusions in the effort.

Erik Ionescu added four goals and an assist for the Waves for a five-point game, with Hunter Danko and Adam Yost also finding the back of the cage with goals.

Yost and Tyce di Pretoro each recorded two assists in the effort, while Max Smirnov tallied 10 saves in goal for the Waves.

"We played a very talented and physical Cal team today," said head coach Merrill Moses following the game. "They separated themselves in the first and third quarter, winning both quarters seven to two. We cannot let teams go on big runs against us and need to play good defense for all four quarters. We will rest and learn from our mistakes and get ready for another tough game versus Brown tomorrow."

Cal was able to build a lead in the early stages, with the Waves trailing 5-0 after five minutes of play. Joseph got Pepperdine on the board with a 6-on-5 goal at the 2:21 mark, with Ionescu then converting a five-meter penalty in the closing seconds of the opening frame, making the score 7-2.

Joseph and Ionescu continued their scoring early in the second, each netting goals to bring Pepperdine back within four at 8-4. Joseph then netted his hat trick next with a goal to bring it to 9-5, but the Bears would end the half on a 3-0 spurt to take a 12-5 advantage into halftime.

After a fourth goal of the game from Joseph to begin the second half, Cal embarked on a 4-0 and eventual 7-1 run to end the third period. Danko deposited a goal on the 6-on-5 for the Waves, but the Bears led 19-7 heading into the final period.

Cal netted the first of the fourth but the Waves put together a 3-0 run to make it a 20-10 contest. Joseph scored his fifth while Ionescu tallied his third of the game, with Yost adding his second goal of the season. Ionescu's fourth of the game eventually brought the final score to 22-11.

Pepperdine is the third team to score 11 or more goals against the Bears this season.

The Waves will take on No. 20 Brown tomorrow at 2:20 p.m. at Santa Clara as part of the Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament.

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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