Pepperdine University
Biola
No. 9 Water Polo Set for Home Opener Doubleheader with Four Games in Four Days
9/2/2026 1:41:00 PM | Men's Water Polo
MALIBU, Calif. — No. 9 Pepperdine water polo (2-2) will host a doubleheader Thursday to open the home slate at Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool.Â
The Waves will take on Biola (2-1) at noon before a matchup with No. 13 UC Santa Barbara (4-2) at 5 p.m. Pepperdine will then host No. 3 Stanford (2-0) Saturday at 1 p.m. before traveling to No. 2 USC (4-0) Sunday at 1 p.m.
Thursday's game against the Gauchos will feature 'Dinner on the Deck', with the first 75 students in attendance to receive free Chick-Fil-A. Saturday's matchup with Stanford is 'Polo in Paradise' with the first 100 students to receive free Kona Ice.
Pepperdine's three home games will be streamed live on ESPN+, with live stats available on the FOSH. The contest at USC can be found on Overnght.com (subscription required) with stats on 6-8sports.com.
Thursday, Sept. 3
Pepperdine vs. Biola | Noon | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
Pepperdine vs. UC Santa Barbara | Dinner on the Deck | 5 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | TicketsÂ
Saturday, Sept. 5
Pepperdine vs. Stanford | Polo in Paradise | 1 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
Sunday, Sept. 6Â
Pepperdine at USC | 1 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats
LAST TIME OUT
- The Waves split four games at the Triton Invite to start the 2026 campaign.
- Pepperdine picked up wins over McKendree and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps before falling in narrow defeats to No. 7 Long Beach State and No. 12 UC San Diego.
- The Waves scored 15 or more goals in each game, averaging 18 goals per game during the tournament.
- Brian Barnuevo and Erik Ionescu paced the Waves offensively for the weekend, each collecting 17 points.
GAME NOTES
- The Waves came in at No. 9 in the Preseason Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Poll this week.
- Brian Barunevo leads the Waves with 14 goals this season to go along with three steals and three assists.
- Erik Ionescu also paced the Waves 17 points this past weekend, through 10 goals and seven assists.
- Cade Anderton has posted three or more points in every game this season, after beginning the campaign with a hat trick against McKendree.
- Anderton has totaled eight goals and seven assists so far to go along with a steal.
- Tyce di Pretoro logged five goals and seven assists for 12 points across the weekend, including three steals and two field blocks.
- di Pretoro posted at least one goal and one assist in all four contests.
- Jackson Benners has helped lead the way defensively for the Waves with a team-high six steals and three field blocks.
- Benners, di Pretoro, Carcarey and Alex Piccin have each recorded multiple field blocks this season.
- Max Smirnov logged 30 saves in his first three appearances this season to the tune of a .441 save-percentage
- Smirnov has also logged five steals while Jaxon Leach has collected four.
- Hunter Danko posted six goals and three assists in the two games Sunday.Â
- Danko logged a hat trick against Long Beach State and UC San Diego.
- Milo Joseph returned to the pool for the Waves with six goals in the season's opening weekend.
- Joseph netted a hat trick in the win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and drew 10 exclusions on Sunday against Long Beach State and UC San Diego.
- Pepperdine was selected No. 3 in the West Coast Conference (WCC) Preseason Coaches Poll.
- Senior Jon Carcarey was named to the All-WCC Preseason Team, following a 2025 campaign that saw him post 34 goals, 24 assists, 26 steals and 10 field blocks.
SERIES HISTORY
- The Waves have one prior matchup with Biola, having earned a 19-4 victory in 2021 at the Triton Invite over the Eagles.
- Pepperdine is 67-57 against UC Santa Barbara in its history, and are currently riding a five-game winning streak against the Gauchos which included an overtime win in Malibu this past season.
- Stanford leads the all-time series 85-12 against the Waves. Pepperdine is 4-19 at home in the series, and fell 14-19 in Palo Alto in 2025.
- The Waves are 22-74-2 all-time against USC, with a 5-26 mark on the road. Pepperdine fell 13-8 in the fixture this past season.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
- Biola began the season claiming wins over Chapman and Whittier following a 13-16 defeat to George Washington. The Eagles fell to Concordia-Irvine in the 2025 WWPA Championship match.
- UC Santa Barbara went 4-2 at the Triton Invite this past weekend, claiming wins over No. 20 Saint Mary's, McKendree, Occidental and Mercyhurst. The Gauchos fell to No. 4 Cal and No. 2 USC, and enter play ranked No. 13 in the country.
- Stanford began the season with a 22-12 win over No. 13 UC Irvine before taking down CSU Fullerton, 16-4. The Cardinal fell in the NCAA semifinals this past year and come in at No. 3 in the CWPA national rankings.
- USC won all four of its contests at the Triton Invite, scoring over 20 goals in all four games against Saint Mary's, McKendree, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and UC Santa Barbara. The reigning national runner-up, the Trojans remain ranked No. 2 in the nation.
The Waves will head east next weekend, with road matchups set with No. 5 Fordham (Sept. 11) and No. 12 Princeton (Sept. 13).
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.
TICKETS
For more information on upcoming home events and to purchase tickets, visit here.
FOLLOW
To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine water polo news, follow the Waves on social media @PepperdineMWP.
