MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's water polo team will start the season in La Jolla at the Triton Invitational hosted by UC San Diego September 7-8. The Bobcats will play four matches over the weekend.
SCHEDULE
Saturday, Sept. 7 at Triton Pool
8:00am – UC Merced vs. UC San Diego
12:00pm – UC Merced vs. Bucknell
Sunday, Sept. 8 at Canyonview Pool
8:00am – UC Merced vs. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
12:00pm – UC Merced vs. UC Santa Barbara
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
STATE OF THE BOBCATS
- UC Merced returns six of its seven starters from its primary lineup a season ago and 75% of the goal scoring.
- All-Conference selections Camden Peterson (82 goals) and William Pezold (60 goals) are back for their sophomore seasons.
- Andrew Jones (60 goals) and Tommy Bauer (26 goals) also return and finished top five on the team in scoring.
- Leading goal scorer Killian Nguyen is no longer with the squad.
- Goalkeeper Matthew Lloyd patrolled the cage last season and made 204 saves across 22 total starts. He saw action in 27 of the 31 matches overall.
- Ethan Stocker, Ethan Chou, and Oscar Luna have also made a start in the cage.
NEWCOMERS
- UC Merced has eight additions to this years roster, including six freshmen and two transfers.
- Mt. Hood Conference Player of the Year Hayden Markell joins the Bobcats from Oregon. Markell is joined by freshmen Misha Golovatyi, Justice Hose, Roman Montalvo, Christopher Mouchmouchian, and goalkeeper Aidan Chirica.
- All-Orange Empire Second Team selection Aydann Hambruch joins the Bobcats from Cypress College, while Vincent Labonte brings plenty of big game experience having been a part of back-to-back 3C2A championships with Golden West College.
COACHING STAFF
- Johnny Bega enters his third year at the helm for UC Merced. Bega, who is the program's only ever head coach, is joined by Alison Mantel, Hannah Ellet, and Mike Stachowski on the pool deck.
A FEW NOTES ABOUT EACH OPPONENT
UCSD
- Picked to finish third in the Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll.
- 2023 ACWPA All-American Honorable Mention Bennett Axline was selected to the Big West Preseason Coaches' Team.
- UC San Diego was ranked as high as #9 in the nation a season ago.
Bucknell
- Shey Gillearn (51 goals) and Hasan Mogutis (46 goals) finished second and third on the team in scoring last season and return for their senior season.
- Bucknell finished third in the MAWPC Championships in 2023.
- Head coach John McBride enters his 14th season leading the Bucknell men's water polo team.
CMS
- CMS won the 2023 USA Water Polo Division III National Championship. Reigning National Coach of the Year Greg Lozano and his squad heads into the new campaign still ranked No.1.
- Reigning ACWPC Division III National Player of the Year Cristian Pang enters his fifth season. Pang tallied 53 goals and 31 assists in 2023.
- ACWPC Division III First Team All-American Nick Kennedy and Second Team All-American Luke (Bear) Weigle also return.
UCSB
- UCSB enters the year ranked eleventh in the country.
- 2023 All-Big West First Team selection Adam Gyenis (64 goals & 24 assists) and All-Big West Second Team goalkeeper Levi Lentin return for reigning Big West Coach of the Year Wolf Wigo.
- 2023 Big West Championship Runner-Up.
AGAINST THE OPPONENTS
- UC Merced will be playing UC San Diego, Bucknell, and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps for the first time in program history.
- UC Merced is 0-1 against UC Santa Barbara. Andrew Jones and Camden Peterson each recorded a hat trick in the loss last season.
NCAA DIVISION II BOUND
- UC Merced was accepted into NCAA Division II on July 11, 2024 and is in year one of a three-year transition period.
- During the transition, the Bobcats will appear on WWPA schedules in 2024 but are not eligible for the postseason. The matches will also not count towards the conference standings.
- During its second year of the candidacy period (2025-26), UC Merced will be eligible for WWPA championships but will not be eligible for NCAA championships.
- UC Merced will gain NCAA Division II active membership status in the fall of 2026.
THE 2024 SCHEDULE
- The Bobcats schedule this year includes five regular-season tournaments and ten single matches, giving the Bobcats 30 contests in total. The Bobcats will play four matches at each tournament. UC Merced will see half of the 2023 NCAA Tournament field this season, including 3X defending national champion California. Biola, Fordham, and San Jose State are the three other NCAA Tournament qualifiers the Bobcats will play.
UP NEXT
- UC Merced will head to Davis, Calif., for the Aggie Invite September 14-15. The field is highlighted by Top 10 opponents UC Davis and San Jose State.
