Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 DAVIS, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's water polo team fell 16-6 to No. 12 San Jose State and 22-3 to No. 8 UC Davis over the weekend at the Aggie Roundup. The Bobcats also played a pair of scrimmages against American River College and West Valley College.
Match One | No. 12 San Jose State 16, UC Merced 6
Vincent Labonte recorded a hat trick in the defeat while three other Bobcats scored a goal each.
The Bobcats trailed 4-0 at the end of the first quarter but nearly went goal for goal with the Spartans in the second frame scoring four goals to SJSU's six. Noah Hernandez scored first and then Labonte scored twice. Tommy Bauer added one before halftime as the Bobcats trailed 10-4 at the break.
The third quarter was the lowest scoring period of the match as the Bobcats limited the nationally-ranked opponent to just two goals while Camden Peterson got one goal back for the Bobcats on the offensive end making it 12-5 heading to the final frame.
Labonte started the fourth quarter completing his hat trick, but the Bobcats were held scoreless the rest of the way and fell 16-6.
Despite the loss, it was arguably the Bobcats best performance against a Top 20 NCAA Division One opponent in eleven all-time tries.
Matthew Lloyd recorded seven saves in the first half, while Ethan Stocker was in the cage for the final 16 minutes and stopped five shots.
Match Two | No. 8 UC Davis 22, UC Merced 3
Labonte, William Pezold, and Howie Zeff scored a goal each for the Bobcats against their highest ranked NCAA Division I opponent of the season.
Zeff scored the Bobcats first goal late in the first quarter, but it was UC Merced's only goal in the first half and head coach Johnny Bega's squad trailed 9-1 at halftime.
The Bobcats began the second half with a Labonte goal and tacked on one more a few minutes later with a successful shot out of the hand of Pezold. That was it for UC Merced.
UC Davis reeled off ten straight goals to end the match, including three from Brady Crouch. Crouch led all players with five overall.
Lloyd and Stocker split time in the cage and combined for seven saves. Lloyd was credited with four,
Up next, UC Merced will host George Washington in the 2024 home opener on Friday, September 20th. The match is scheduled to begin at 7:00pm at the Aquatic Center in Merced, Calif.
