The UCI Men’s Water Polo team (16-13, 2-3) defeated Pepperdine (13-14, 2-3) 19-18 in a nailbiter first round match of the Golden Coast Championships in Santa Barbara, CA on Friday, Nov. 18.
Sophomore attacker Ethan Shipman struck first for the Anteaters. Shipman, who is fifth in the conference for scoring, scored within the first minute of the match to make it 1-0 UC Irvine. About 40 seconds later, Pepperdine struck back with a goal from junior center defender Nico Tierney. However, the Anteaters put themselves back on top again, 2-1, after senior attacker Zlatan Nikocevic found the cage with 6:20 left in the quarter.
With about four minutes left, Pepperdine senior center Austin Smit scored back-to-back goals to put the Waves up 4-3. UCI redshirt sophomore attacker Jake Liechty set up Nikocevic for the hattrick to even things out for the ‘Eaters once again 4-4.
After a Pepperdine counterattack, graduate student attacker Dennis Blyashov went for a quick shot in the corner of the cage to take the lead for the Waves 5-4 with 1:54 left in the first quarter. UCI sophomore attacker Dylan Patist had a lucky goal after the shot deflected off the post and bounced into the goal to change the scoreboard to 5-5.
Pepperdine redshirt senior attacker Curtis Jarvis skipped the ball into the cage 6-5 and Pepperdine was in the lead once again. Nearly 24 seconds on the clock, UC Irvine tried to create a goal to tie the match by the end of the quarter, but sophomore driver Stewart Campbell’s shot deflected off of Pepperdine redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Justin Edward. The first quarter concluded with Pepperdine up 6-5.
To open the second quarter, Patist found the space in the cage to go right past Edward. Tight defense from the UC Irvine squad made it difficult for the Waves to create opportunities. A high ball feed to Pepperdine junior attacker Anthony D’Ambra in the center led to a quick finish in the cage to make it 7-6 Pepperdine.
A five-meter shot was awarded to the Waves, and Tierney stepped up to take the shot. However, Tierney’s shot was denied by UCI sophomore goalkeeper Jacob Pyle. Patist’s fifth goal of the match struck a shot from outside of the box with only four seconds left on the shot clock to gain the largest lead of the match and end the second quarter 9-7 UCI.
Right out of the break, UCI sophomore utility Jack Stevens scored on the first drive of the stanza to extend the Anteater’s lead of the match to 10-7 in the third quarter. A turnover by Pepperdine led to a counterattack goal by Blyashov to cut the score gap to one, 9-10. After a quick offensive transition, UC Irvine extended their lead with a powerful shot from outside of the box from Patist to add some insurance for UCI 13-11.
After the Waves earned an exclusion, Jarvis found the cage once again to equalize the match for Pepperdine 13-13 with just under two minutes left in the quarter. Campbell’s first goal of the day got the Anteaters to overtake the lead 14-13 UCI. Blyashov toughed through the tight ‘Eater defense to score a goal from a distance, 14-14. Moments later, Shipman found Nikocevic on the side to steal the lead 15-14 UCI to end the third quarter of the match.
Going into the final quarter of the match, the Anteaters extended the score to a two-goal lead with Patist’s strike from the wing. Freshman utility Jackson Matos, an All-GCC Freshman Team selection, was wide open for his shot and found the back of the net for the ‘Eaters 17-15, with nearly six minutes left in the fourth quarter. Freshman driver Luka Krstic then pushed in a deflected ball for a goal after a missed shot from sophomore center Tyler Padua off the post with 2:30 left, 19-16 UCI.
In desperate need of a goal, Pepperdine freshman attacker Adam Csapo had a powerful shot from afar to keep the Waves in the match, 17-19. As the Pepperdine squad looked to cut the match to one with one minute to go in the final quarter, Csapo pulled through once again with a goal near post to make it 18-19 UCI. The Waves put intense pressure on the UC Irvine squad but were not in time for another goal to equalize the match. With that, the Anteaters’ secured their spot in the semifinals.
The Men’s Water Polo team concluded their season with a 10-13 loss against Pacific on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 5 P.M. in Santa Barbara, CA.
Hanah Kitamoto is a Sports Intern for the fall 2022 Quarter. She can be reached at ykitamot@uci.edu.