BERKELEY, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's water polo team fell 25-7 to 2nd-ranked and 2X defending national champion Cal on Saturday afternoon at Spieker Aquatics Complex. The match finished off a 19-game road trip for the Bobcats.
Killian Nguyen led the Bobcats (12-16) with four goals, while William Pezold scored twice and Camden Peterson found the back of the net once.
Nguyen scored his first two goals in the first two minutes of the game, but the Bobcats next goal wasn't until the midway point of the third quarter. In the Bobcats scoring drought, Cal scored 15 unanswered goals.
Cal led 6-2 after eight minutes and extended their lead to 11-2 before intermission. Cal then scored four quick goals in the third quarter before Nguyen notched his hat trick.
Pezold also scored in the third quarter but the Bobcats trailed 18-4 heading into the final frame.
UC Merced and Cal traded goals to start the fourth quarter before the Bears ended the match on a 5-1 goal scoring run to finish off the 25-7 victory.
Matthew Lloyd earned the start in cage and made seven first half saves. Sebastian Palomera recorded four saves in the third quarter and Oscar Luna notched two fourth quarter saves in the cage.
"Our team had a 2-0 lead in the first few minutes and played a solid first half with Matthew Lloyd playing really well defensively for us," head coach Johnny Bega said. "It was a great experience to play the two-time defending national champions and we have great respect for Cal's program. Thank you to Kirk Everist for giving UC Merced this opportunity."
Up next, UC Merced will host Concordia University Irvine on Thursday, October 26 at 4:30pm at the Aquatic Center.
