In a dramatic back-and-forth battle that required sudden-death overtime to decide a winner, No. 10 UC San Diego (17-8, 0-3 Big West) men’s water polo suffered a heartbreaking 11-10 loss to No. 6 UC Davis (11-10, 3-0 Big West) on Saturday, Oct. 25, at Canyonview Aquatic Center.
The game was a nail-biter from the start; UCD struck early to open the scoring. UCSD caught up briefly, but redshirt senior attacker Adam Ting put the Aggies back up with two minutes left in the first quarter. UCSD responded with goals from graduate student attacker Felipe Ferreira on a power play and senior utility player Luca Rago to claim its first lead of the game. The Tritons ended the opening period up 3-2.
The second quarter remained tense. UCD scored two goals in quick succession to retake the lead. Senior utility player Eamon Hennessey converted a penalty shot for the Tritons, but the tie was short-lived after the Aggies scored on a controversial power play. Senior utility player Bennett Axline tied it back up with his second goal of the game, bringing the score to 5-5 at the break.
UCD seized momentum after halftime, scoring two quick goals to build the Aggies’ largest lead of the game at 7-5. A late goal from freshman attacker Kyson Becker kept UCSD within striking distance, but the Aggies maintained an 8-6 lead heading into the final quarter.
The fourth period showcased the Tritons’ grit. After falling behind by three goals, UCSD mounted a stunning comeback. Triton head coach Matt Ustaszewski was ejected from the game, but the loss only seemed to further fuel the team. Junior utility player Finn Bugelli sparked the rally with a rebound goal, followed by a power-play conversion on the next possession. With just 40 seconds left on the clock, senior utility player Brendon Fezzey fired in a huge goal to bring the Tritons within one, forcing a UCD timeout. Freshman attacker Jackson Boettner became the hero of the moment with the game on the line — finding the back of the net with just two seconds remaining to push the game into overtime and send the Triton bench into a frenzy.
After a scoreless first overtime period, the Tritons saw a golden opportunity when UCD was charged with two exclusions at the start of the second. However, the Aggies won the crucial sprint to nullify the man advantage. Neither team scored in the second overtime, ultimately sending the game to a sudden-death finale. In the end, Aggie redshirt senior center Andrew Hitchcock found the winning goal, ending the Tritons’ valiant effort in agonizing fashion.
“There’s a lot to learn, but there are a lot of positive things we can take out of this game,” Ferreira said in a postgame interview with The UCSD Guardian. “Being consistent throughout the whole game — that is something we need to work on.”
On Sept. 21, the Tritons walked away with a 14-12 win against UCD in the MPSF Invitational, a non-conference tournament. Saturday’s rematch was UCSD’s third conference loss, leaving it tied with Cal State Fullerton for last in the Big West standings. The Tritons will be back in action at Fullerton on Thursday, Oct. 30.
