IRVINE, Calif. - The 11th-ranked UC San Diego men's water polo team split its final two games at the UC Irvine Invitational on Sunday to finish in 11th-place at the 16-team tournament featuring the nation's top teams. The Tritons nearly rallied from a three goal deficit against No. 9 UC Irvine but lost to the Anteaters by an 8-7 score. In the 11th-place game, the Tritons built a 7-3 lead against No. 12 UC Davis and cruised to the 11-4 win. The Tritons are now 9-9 on the season. UCSD is back in action next Friday when it hosts No. 6 UC Santa Barbara. First sprint is slated for 6:00 p.m.

In the win over UC Davis, seven different Tritons would score goals. Steven Donohoe led the way with three goals, while Bryce Madsen and Ryan Allred scored two goals each. Ian Bausback, Sean Roberts, Kneif Lohse and Sean Cruz also scored for the Tritons. David Morton recorded six saves while Daniel Ramirez saved two shots.

The Tritons led 3-2 after the first quarter against UCD. The Tritons went on a 4-1 run in the second quarter to take the 7-3 lead at halftime. The Tritons would continue with their solid defense, holding the Aggies to just one score in the second half as UCSD won 11-4.

Against UC Irvine, Steven Donohoe added three more goals while Peter Gresham scored twice. Madsen and Roberts also scored for the Tritons. Morton had nine saves in goal.

UCSD trailed by one goal at the end of the first period and trailed 4-3 at halftime. UC Irvine extended its lead to 8-5 early in the fourth quarter before Gresham scored at the 1:26 mark to pull UCSD within 8-6. Roberts' goal pulled UCSD within 8-7 with :47 left but the teams would remain scoreless to the finish.