The UCSD men’s water polo team ended its regular season with a disappointing 7-5 home loss Sunday to UC Santa Barbara.
Guardian
The game had little effect on the Tritons’ position in the standings, but they still hoped for a win. The game marked the final home appearance of senior co-captains Vladimir Djapic and Jonathan Samuels, and the Tritons wished for a memorable farewell.
After UCSD suffered a tough loss to UC Irvine on Nov. 4, the men’s water polo team wanted to gain momentum with a victory over UCSB going into the Western Water Polo Association Championship next weekend. However, the Tritons may have overlooked their final regular season game and were outplayed on Sunday.
The Gauchos mounted a more balanced and efficient attack from the start of the game. Santa Barbara scored the first goal of the game and came out of the first period leading 2-1. In the second quarter, Samuels scored to tie the game at 2-2 just 21 seconds into the period, but the Gauchos quickly broke the tie and held a 4-2 lead heading into halftime.
In the third period, Santa Barbara took control of the game. The team challenged Triton goalkeeper Lance Onken several times and scored two goals in the period, while UCSD could not get the ball past Gaucho goalkeeper Trevor Spence. The quarter ended with the Tritons trailing 6-2.
With many chances in the final seven minutes of the match, UCSD tried to mount a comeback. The Tritons came within two goals with 45 seconds left in the game, but they could not come up with the tying goals against the strong Gaucho defense.
The Tritons had opportunities, but failed to capitalize. UCSD earned six one-man advantages throughout the game and did not score during any of them.
“”In a two-goal match, going 0-6 on advantages is always going to hurt you,”” Triton head coach Denny Harper said after the game.
Although the Tritons had advantage six times, Santa Barbara’s defense did not allow its opponent to penetrate. The Gauchos kept the ball on the perimeter where UCSD could not get a high-percentage shot. Spence made eight saves in goal for Santa Barbara while Onken made seven for the Tritons.
“”Defensively, we played a strong game,”” said Santa Barbara head coach Joe O’Brien. “”We did get lucky, however, coming up with several tips and blocks of their shots.””
In their final game in front of a UCSD crowd, Samuels tallied three goals and Djapic had one. Freshman Brandon Borso also added a goal. On the other side of the pool, the Gauchos had six different players score.
Santa Barbara, who is ranked 10th nationally, improved its record to 8-9, and the ninth-ranked Tritons fell to 18-5 with the loss.
Harper predicts UCSD will most likely get the No. 2 seed in the tournament behind Loyola Marymount University, which defeated the Tritons on Oct. 25 by one goal. Although LMU will have the home advantage, Harper and the Tritons are confident about their chances in the tournament.
