LA JOLLA, Calif.. – The 11th-ranked UC San Diego men's water polo team got off to a strong start but ended up dropping a 10-7 decision to No. 15 Loyola Marymount Saturday afternoon at Canyonview Aquatic Center.

With the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) loss, the Tritons fell to 10-8 overall and 3-2 in the conference. The Lions went to 8-10 on the season and remain unbeaten in the WWPA at 4-0.

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HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego led 4-2 after the opening quarter but was out-scored in the remaining three periods.

Calder Hilde-Jones, the leading scorer for the Tritons, netted three of his four goals of the afternoon in the first quarter, one of those coming on a power play. Kaden Likins also scored.

However, UC San Diego could not find the back of the net in the second quarter. It was just the fourth time this season that the Tritons had a scoreless frame in regulation. LMU struck for three goals to make the score 5-4 in favor of the Lions heading into halftime.

The third quarter saw the visitors hold a 3-2 edge in goals and in the fourth, the Lions tacked on another two to the Tritons' one to account for the final score. Manuel Augusto and Likins were the goal scorers for UC San Diego in the third and Hilde-Jones scored the final goal of the game on a penalty shot with 1:49 left in the fourth.

Miles Wilson assisted on four of UC San Diego's seven goals, upping his season total to 16.

Alexander Nemeth made 10 saves in net for the Tritons.

Blazo Mitrovic led Loyola Marymount with five points on four goals and an assist. Davis Carrasco scored twice and added a pair of assists, while Tyler Harvey had a goal and two assists. Robert Halligan finished with 11 saves. 

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QUOTABLES FROM HEAD COACH DENNY HARPER



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TRITON TIDBITS

• UC San Diego defeated LMU by scores of 13-8 and 14-13 earlier in the season.
• With his four goals today, Calder Hilde-Jones is now the team's scoring leader with 42 tallies on the season.
• Hilde-Jones has scored at least once in every game this season and has multiple goals in his last 10 outings.
• It was the fourth time Miles Wilson has dished out two or more assists in a game.
• Alexander Nemeth has finished with a double-digit kill total eight times.

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UP NEXT
UC San Diego hosts another WWPA contest, this time against Fresno Pacific, on Friday, October 29 at 6 p.m.
 
For the team's full season schedule as well as live coverage links, click here.

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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.