Saturday, November 9
Los Angeles, Calif.
10:30 AM
USC
at
UCLA
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Photo by: John McGillen
No. 4 Trojans Visit No. 1 UCLA In Saturday’s Crosstown Splashdown
November 06, 2019 | Men's Water Polo, Features
USC squares off against the Bruins in a key MPSF morning matchup in Westwood.
#4 USC (11-4, 1-0) at #1 UCLA (16-1, 1-0)
Saturday, Nov. 9 | 10:30 a.m. | Spieker Aquatics Center
Series Record: USC leads 70-58-1 (W1)
TV: Pac-12 Los Angeles (PbP: Anne Marie Anderson | Analyst: Tony Azevedo)
THIS WEEK
Boosted by a winning weekend a home last week, No. 4 USC (11-4, 1-0 MPSF) prepares to head across town next for a rivalry clash against No. 1 UCLA (16-1, 1-0). The Trojans and the Bruins will do battle at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday (Nov. 9) at Spieker Aquatics Center for a key MPSF clash. The game will be televised on Pac-12 Los Angeles.
RANKINGS
The defending NCAA champs opened up 2019 ranked No. 1 in the nation. An early loss sent the Trojans to No. 5 in the land on Sept. 18. USC climbed up to No. 4 in the Oct. 9 rankings before moving to No. 6 in the Oct. 23 rankings. The Trojans were ranked No. 7 in the Oct. 30 rankings, but have climbed to No. 4 this week (as of Nov. 6).
SCOUTING UCLA
The No. 1 Bruins are 16-1 overall and 1-0 in MPSF play after beating Cal 10-9 last week. Ashworth Molthen leads UCLA in scoring with 34 goals. Goalie Alex Wolf is averaging 11.12 saves and 8.68 goals against per game in 13 appearances. USC is 70-58-1 all-time against the Bruins after going 2-1 in three meetings last year. USC beat UCLA 13-11 in their MPSF meeting, then fell 7-5 in the MPSF Tournament third-place game before beating UCLA 8-7 in the NCAA Semifinals.
LAST ACTION
USC made it a winning weekend in home waters with a crucial 9-8 upset win over No. 1 Stanford followed by a 17-9 victory over No. 12 San José State last week at Uytengsu Aquatics Center. Agasint the Cardinal, USC sophomore goalie Nic Porter went big with a career-high 20 saves in the cage, stymying the Cardinal on the defensive end while senior Marin Dasic and freshman Marcus Longton delivered a hat trick apiece on the offensive end on Senior Day for the Trojans. USC's seniors combined forces right out of the gates as Sam Slobodien drew an exclusion on USC's opening possession. Luka Karaman would hit Dasic for a sizzling skipper that netted an early 1-0 lead. Stanford answered with back-to-back goals to edge ahead 2-1 in the first three minutes of play, only to see Longton rattle in back-to-back goals of his own to get USC back on top. That two-goal rally would balloon to four straight strikes from the Trojans as Dasic faked and fired for a 4-2 lead. And after Porter squashed another Stanford 6-on-5 chance, Jacob Mercep sizzled in a solo shot for a 5-2 USC advantage midway through the second. Stanford would carve the deficit down to one with a 6-on-5 finish and an even strike in the final minute of the half, and USC was gripping a 5-4 lead at the break. A Stanford 5-meter penalty shot would knot things up 5-5 at 6:15 in the third, but USC was ready to fire back. Hannes Daube hit freshman Chris Sturtevant for a power play rocket that nudged USC back into the lead, and the Trojans would stay a step ahead the rest of the way. Daube delivered another assist with a pass to Longton for his third of the day — a career best for the freshman. That shot had USC up 7-5, and the Trojans defense stiffened from there. On another Stanford 6-on-5, Mercep blocked a shot that popped up on Porter, who was able to adjust and knock away the save. The Cardinal misfired on their next power play chance, while Porter's save count ballooned to 16 with a huge stop in the final minute of the third. That helped spur Jake Ehrhardt to lace in a nifty lob, and USC was up 8-5 entering the final frame. Stanford made a two-goal rally thanks to another 5-meter penalty shot and then an even score pulled the Cardinal within one, down 8-7 with 5:09 to go. Once again, Porter came up clutch. A booming stop on a Stanford counterattack would be followed by a steal from Daube. Daube would find Dasic soon after, and the senior captain unleashed a low slider to get USC a 9-7 advantage with 2:20 to go. The USC defense would hold strong from there, with Porter collecting his 20th save — the most on record by a Trojan since at least 2005 — before a late Stanford 6-on-5 led to a last-second goal that would wrap the game as a final 9-8 USC victory. The next day vs. San José State, the Trojans would shake off a two-goal deficit by scoring five straight goals to storm into the lead before going even bigger in the fourth frame to top the Spartans in USC's final home game of the year. Trailing 5-3 midway through the second period, USC final found a groove. Daube delivered a cross to Mercep for a sizzler that lit the spark on what would balloon to a five-goal USC scoring surge. Dasic would fake and fire for the equalizer next, and then Ehrhardt went on a solo mission to get USC its first lead of the game, up 6-5 in the final minute of the first half. Hard-working senior Slobodien earned a late 6-on-5 for his Trojans, then promptly found Luke Wyatt for a lefty laser just before the halftime buzzer, and USC was back in form while gripping a 7-5 advantage. In the third, Ehrhardt squashed SJSU's opening 6-on-5 chance with a booming field block, and then Dasic found Daube for a ripper that tallied USC's fifth straight score and an 8-5 lead. The Spartans broke their silence with a 6-on-5 next, and the teams would stay in scoring stride during the third with three goals apiece. Daube had his hat trick complete by the end of the third, while Longton zipped in his second as USC was up 11-8 entering the fourth. That's where the USC gameplan finally clicked into place. Only one SJSU goal would get through the USC defense, while the Trojans piled on seven goals of their own at the other end. Senior Matt Maier struck twice in the fourth, as did fellow senior Dasic and junior Mercep. Slobodien would unleash a searing backhand blast as well, and USC had a decisive 17-9 comeback win in the books to round out a perfect season at home for the Trojans.
SWEEPS WEEK
USC garnered its first MPSF awards sweep of the season on Nov. 4 with goalie Nic Porter named MPSF Player of the Week for the first time and freshman Marcus Longton nabbing USC's first MPSF Newcomer of the Week honor this season. The two first-time picks were instrumental in USC's upset win over No. 1 Stanford and a big victory over San José State in USC's final home games of the year. Nic Porter had a career-high 20 saves — the most single-game saves by a USC goalie since at least 2005 — to help the Trojans upset #1 Stanford 9-8 in an MPSF clash on Saturday. Porter broke his previous career high of 15 with his 16th save coming against a dangerous Stanford counterattack in the final minute of the third, preserving a two-goal USC lead. His 20th save came with 1:20 remaining to hold a crucial late two-goal USC lead. It was Porter's fifth straight game with double-digit saves and the most since setting a previous career high of 15 almost exactly a year ago. On Sunday, Porter tallied nine saves in a 17-9 USC win over visiting #12 San José State. Marcus Longton had his first career hat trick in USC's win over Stanford, then scored twice against San José State to help make it a winning weekend for the Trojans. Against the Cardinal, Longton scored twice in the first period, going back-to-back to give USC its first lead of the game. Longton added his third to get USC up 7-5 during the third period. Against SJSU, Longton scored in the second and third periods, then added an assist on USC's final goal of the game. Longton had been scoreless in USC's previous three games before the breakout hat trick vs. Stanford.
CENTURY CLUB
USC's newest card-carrying member of the 100-goal club is senior Marin Dasic. With his eighth of a final 10 goals scored at the Inland Empire Classic, Dasic drummed up the 100th goal of his USC career. Dasic now boasts 125 career goals to date to rank No. 23 all-time among career scorers at USC. Several fellow Trojans also are closing in on the club, with Jacob Mercep gripping 98 career goals and Sam Slobodien and Matt Maier with 95 each.
BY THE NUMBERS
Now 15 games into the season, USC has outscored opponents 211-141. The Trojan offense is generating 14.07 goals per game while the defense has allowed 9.4 goals-against per game. Leading the offensive charge so far are junior Jacob Mercep and Marin Dasic with 36 and 33 goals, respectively. Sophomore Hannes Daube is next with 25 goals, followed by senior Sam Slobodien and sophomore Jake Ehrhardt with 20 goals apiece. On the defensive end, USC has utilized three goalies. All-American sophomore Nic Porter has capped up in 10 games and averages 11.53 saves per game while giving up 9.77 goals per game. Junior Vaios Vlahotasios has appeared in seven games with a 9.67 saves-per-game effort and allowing 9.33 goals-against per game. Jere Ashby has also checked in for two periods of work, having collected nine saves and allowed just two goals in his appearances in the cage. In all, USC has had 16 different Trojans score to date, with five players tallying their first career goals. USC set a season high with 15 different scorers in USC's Sept. 15 win over Concordia.
SUMMER SUCCESS
Capped up for competition around the globe, several Trojans went big in international waters during the summer of 2019. Captain of the USA's World University Games squad, Jake Ehrhardt helped Team USA to a silver medal at the event in Italy. Soon after, Hannes Daube and Marko Vavic were on-hand for the United States' push to Olympic qualification. Those two Trojans grabbed gold medals at the Pan American Games in Peru to secure the USA men's spot at the 2020 Olympic Games. Daube and Vavic also competed with Team USA at the FINA World Championships in South Korea, where the United States men placed ninth. Freshman Chris Sturtevant also got in on international action over the summer as a member of Great Britain's World University Games squad.
PINTA'S PROGRAM
Marko Pintaric, who has been part of 14 NCAA championships during his 18 years on the USC coaching staff, was named head coach of the USC men's and women's water polo teams on August 29, replacing former head coach Jovan Vavic. An All-American and 1998 NCAA champion as a player at USC, Pintaric served as co-head coach for the USC men for the past three seasons (2016-18), most recently helping the Trojans to the 2018 NCAA Championship. His USC coaching career began as an assistant coach to both the USC men and women in 2001. Pintaric stayed in a dual coaching role until NCAA rules for coaching staff sizes changed in 2015-16, prompting a move to a scouting director role with the women while his assistant coaching role continued with the men for the next four years. Pintaric, who scored the game-winning goal in USC's first-ever national championship, finished his USC playing career before he had the chance to defend the Trojans' 1998 NCAA title. In 18 years since on the coaching staff, he has helped five USC men's water polo teams successfully defend their NCAA crowns. Now, as the head coach, Pintaric has the opportunity to set up defense of another NCAA trophy.
ALL-AMERICAN LEADERSHIP Senior captains Marin Dasic, Matt Maier and Sam Slobodien are seasoned, savvy and certain leaders for a USC roster brimming with talent. They are three of eight returning All-Americans, including a power pack of four of 2018 newcomers who exploded onto the scene in their first seasons as Trojans. Sophomores Hannes Daube, Jake Ehrhardt and Nic Porter and junior Jacob Mercep made indelible marks on the stat sheets for USC last year, and they are in full stride for 2019. Aussie goalie Porter and Croatian product Mercep represent possibly one of the most daunting one-two punches out there, as Porter stops shots on the defensive end while Mercep scores them at the other.
SENIOR STRENGTH
While All-Americans Dasic, Maier and Slobodien are in their final seasons of competition, there are three other noteworthy Trojans in their fourth years with the program. Redshirt juniors Troy Furniss, Luka Karaman and Luke Wyatt also play a hefty leadership role for the group. Their dedication and hard work, too, have lifted all of them into significant contribution roles in the water as well. A lefty, Wyatt punched up 23 goals for the Trojan cause last season, including one in the NCAA Championship game. Karaman and Furniss factored in for 12 goals apiece in 2018.
CAGE FIGHTERS
In goal, returning All-American Nic Porter has been pushed once more by teammate Vaios Vlahotasios, who was also a newcomer to the USC cage in 2018 and who has proven himself a shot-stopping force to reckon with. Porter and Vlahotasios are a formidable goalie tandem for the Trojans, and are joined by freshman Garrett Allen and sophomore Jere Ashby as USC's talented goalkeeping corps for 2019.
THE NEW CREW
USC has 11 new Trojans in Cardinal and Gold in 2019. On the first weekend of competition, much of that group earned their stripes. Goalie Jere Ashby checked in for his first time in the cage, while fellow newcomers Matt Harrison, Marcus Longton, Grayden Reynolds and Chris Sturtevant all registered their first goals as Trojans.
LAST SEASON
The 2018 Trojans reached the NCAA final for the 14th consecutive season and emerged with the trophy for the 10th time in program history. A 14-12 win over host Stanford saw USC claim the national championship and finish out its first 30-win season. At the close of the winning campaign, USC had a program-record 10 Trojans earn All-America status, while newcomer Jacob Mercep scored NCAA Tournament MVP honors after a five-goal outburst in the title match. Mercep and freshman Hannes Daube both picked up All-America First Team honors to lead the pack of 10 honorees in USC's 30-3 season. •
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