LA JOLLA, Calif. — It was Senior Day Saturday at Canyonview Aquatic Center and the four Triton honorees all contributed in a 20-9 win over Chapman.
It was the final regular season game for 13th-ranked UC San Diego. The Tritons head into the postseason next week with a 16-12 record.
Chapman, ranked fourth nationally among NCAA Division III teams, fell to 13-10.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego scored the first four goals of the game and never looked back. Two seniors figured in both tallies as captain
Kaden Likins netted his first of three goals on the day just 34 seconds in and
Jack Martin followed at the 4:57 mark.
UC San Diego led 5-1 after one quarter and 12-3 at halftime. Chapman outscored UC San Diego 5-4 in the third frame and the Tritons rolled to a 4-1 advantage in the fourth quarter.
A goal by
Landon Akerstrom with 3:34 left in the game was the final goal of the day and it gave the Tritons an 11-goal lead, their largest of the day. The freshman racked up a hat trick plus a pair of assists.
Now back to the seniors. Likins ended up tying his career-high in points with seven, coming from three goals and four assists. Martin also added a drawn exclusion and a steal to his totals.
Max Abravanel finished with a goal and an assist plus a drawn exclusion and a steal in just his second game back after missing the team's first 26 contests due to injury.
Miles Wilson scored a goal midway through the fourth quarter and logged a steal.
Junior
Lucas Romaguera had two goals and two assists, while classmate
Bennett Axline found the back of the net four times.
The brothers Bugelli combined for three goals, two from junior
Rhys and a single strike by freshman
Finn.
Junior
Felipe Ferreira assisted on three Triton goals.
UC San Diego was able to get three different goalies in the pool. Junior
Logan Estes started and made five saves over the first half. Sophomore
Nikita Valajev had two saves in the third quarter. Junior
Parker George, making his debut for the Tritons, was between the posts in the fourth stanza.
For Chapman, Spencer Snow came away with a hat trick. Brady DiMaria and Steven Rubly each scored twice. Ben Blatt and Sam Everlove each played a half and each made three saves.
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HIGHLIGHT REEL
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INTERVIEW WITH KADEN LIKINS
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TRITON TIDBITS
• UC San Diego is now 9-0 all-time against Chapman.
• The Tritons' three-game win streak is their longest of the season.
• UC San Diego's 20 goals were the second-most this season (22 vs. Occidental on Sept. 23).
• Denny Harper, the 42-year head coach of the Triton men's water polo team, was inducted into the UC San Diego Athletics Hall of Fame this morning.
• The Big West is sponsoring men's water polo for the first time in 32 years. Its last period with the sport was 1984-91.
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UP NEXT
UC San Diego is set to host the Big West Men's Water Polo Championship Nov. 17-19. In their opening game, the third-seeded Tritons take on sixth-seeded Cal State Fullerton Friday (6 p.m.). The winner advances to take on No. 2 UC Santa Barbara Saturday (1 p.m.) in a semifinal. The title game is slated for Sunday (1 p.m.). The conference champion earns an automatic berth in the NCAA Championship. For a full schedule and more, visit the
tournament home page.
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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 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.
