LA JOLLA, Calif. - The 10th-ranked UC San Diego women's water polo team is set to play two matches as part of this weekend's Lancer Joust tournament, hosted by California Baptist.
On Saturday, Jan. 27, the Tritons take on CBU at 11 a.m. followed by La Verne at 5 p.m. Both games will be played at the Lancer Aquatics Center on the Riverside campus and admission is free of charge.
The last time UC San Diego played in this tourney was 2022. The Tritons went 2-0 with wins against Biola (17-10) and Pomona-Pitzer (10-5).
The Tritons come in with a 3-1 record following a hot start to their season at last week's Winter Invitational in Santa Barbara. They earned victories against Ottawa, No. 25 Marist, and Whittier. The team's lone setback was a single-goal loss to third-ranked UCLA.
After starting the season on the road for two weeks, UC San Diego returns home next week to host its annual Triton Invitational. The 15-team tourney is set for Feb. 2-4. Friday's action will take place at the Coggan Family Aquatic Complex on the campus of La Jolla High School. All games on Saturday and Sunday will be played at UC San Diego's Canyonview Aquatic Center. For a complete schedule and ticket information, visit the
tournament page.
THE ESSENTIALS
--- Game 5: The Joust ---
• #10 UC San Diego (3-1) at
California Baptist (0-2)
• Saturday / January 27 / 11 am Pacific
•
Lancer Aquatics Center / Riverside, Calif. (
map)
• Entry: Free of charge
•
Tournament Central
•
Watch |
Live Stats
•
Twitter /
Instagram
--- Game 6: The Joust ---
• #10 UC San Diego (3-1) vs.
Fresno Pacific (0-0)
• Saturday / January 27 / 5 pm Pacific
•
Lancer Aquatics Center / Riverside, Calif. (
map)
• Entry: Free of charge
•
Tournament Central
•
Live Stats
•
Twitter /
Instagram
TRITON DEBUTS
Four UC San Diego freshmen made their collegiate debuts against Ottawa on Jan. 20 at UC Santa Barbara's Winter Invitational. The foursome accounted for five goals, two assists, and six steals in the Tritons' 23-2 victory.
•
Emily Cloherty: 2 shots, 2 goals, 1 drawn exclusion, 1 steal
•
Maddie McMahon: 1 shot, 1 goal, 1 steal
•
Olivia Obando: 1 shot, 1 goal, 3 steals
•
Abigail Schechter: 1 shot, 1 goal, 2 assists, 1 steal
TRITON LEADERS
(through 1/26)
•
Goals:
Caroline Christl 6,
Courtney Okumura 6,
Cascade Stensland 6,
Kendall Thomas 6
•
Assists:
Allie Bartholomew 6
•
Points:
Emily Cloherty 7,
Courtney Okumura 7,
Cascade Stensland 7,
Kendall Thomas 7
•
Shots:
Caroline Christl, 14
•
Shot Percentage:
Emily Cloherty 1.000,
Maddie McMahon 1.000,
Olivia Obando 1.000,
Lexi Stahl 1.000
•
Drawn Exclusions:
Kendall Thomas 5
•
Steals:
Lexi Stahl 8
•
Field Blocks:
Kenzie Larson 1,
Sofia Munatones 1,
Sydney Munatones 1,
Kendall Thomas 1
TRITONS IN THE BIG WEST TOP 10
(through 1/25, all games)
•
Allie Bartholomew: 5th in assists (6)
•
Sasha Frey: 5th in steals (5)
•
Kenzie Larson: 4th in steals (6), 6th in sprint wins (2), 8th in steals/game (1.5)
•
Courtney Okumura: 5th in steals (5), 6th in sprint wins (2), 10th in goals (6)
•
Lexi Stahl: 1st in steals (8), 1st in steals/game (2.7), 4th in goals against average (8.00), 4th in saves/game (7.3), 5th in saves (22), 5th save percentage (.524)
•
Katie Ward: 1st in save percentage (.889), 1st in goals against average (0.67), 8th in saves/games (4.0)
ACTIVE TRITON SCORING STREAKS
(through 1/26)
•
Grayson Mix: 2
•
Sydney Munatones: 2
•
Abigail Schechter: 2
TRITON GAME-WINNING GOALS
(through 1/26)
•
Caroline Christl: 1 (Ottawa)
•
Grayson Mix: 1 (Marist)
•
Cascade Stensland: 1 (Whittier)
TRITON GOAL BREAKDOWN
(through 1/26)
TRITON RECORDS
(through 1/26)
| Overall |
3-1 |
| Big West |
0-0 |
| Non-conference |
3-1 |
| At home |
0-0 |
| On the road |
0-0 |
| At at neutral site |
3-1 |
| In overtime |
0-0 |
| Scoring 4-6 goals |
0-0 |
| Scoring 7-9 goals |
0-1 |
| Scoring 10-12 goals |
0-0 |
| Scoring 13-15 goals |
1-0 |
| Scoring 16-18 goals |
0-0 |
| Scoring 19-20 goals |
1-0 |
| Scoring 21-plus goals |
1-0 |
| More steals than opponent |
3-0 |
| Opponent has more steals |
0-1 |
| Steals are even |
0-0 |
| More shots than opponent |
3-1 |
| Opponent has more shots |
0-0 |
| Shots are even |
0-0 |
| More exclusions than opponent |
1-1 |
| Opponent has more exclusions |
2-0 |
| Exclusions are even |
0-0 |
| More field blocks than opponent |
2-0 |
| Opponent has more field blocks |
1-1 |
| Field blocks are even |
0-0 |
| On Wednesdays |
0-0 |
| On Thursdays |
0-0 |
| On Fridays |
0-0 |
| On Saturdays |
1-1 |
| On Sundays |
2-0 |
2024 AWARDS
Kendall Thomas: UCU Athlete of the Week (1/29).
UC SAN DIEGO ROSTER BREAKDOWN
Returning (20)
Annika Arroyo, UTL
Allie Bartholomew, ATT
Lauren Bellavia, ATT
Caroline Christl, UTL
Lucia Doak, CD
Sila Fedler, UTL
Sasha Frey, ATT
Hannah Kawar, C
Kenzie Larson, ATT
Grayson Mix, UTL
Abby Moll, ATT
Sofia Munatones, ATT
Sydney Munatones, ATT
Courtney Okumura, ATT
Olivia Seargeant, UTL
Lexi Stahl, GK
Cascade Stensland, CD
Kendall Thomas, C
Katie Ward, GK
Bria Zwaschka, GK
Lost (8)
Caroline Courtois, ATT
Natalie DiMeo, ATT
Tania Frank, ATT
Madisongrace Guerra, GK
Maja Layden, C
Maddie Solares, ATT
Kayla Peacock, ATT
Carson Rampelberg, ATT
Newcomers (7)
Kyla Bruhn, ATT
Emily Cloherty, ATT
Paedrin Gillett, GK
Zoe Grover, ATT
Maddie McMahon, UTL
Olivia Obando, ATT
Abigail Schechter, UTL
THOMAS NAMED TO ALL-BIG WEST PRESEASON COACHES' TEAM
Junior
Kendall Thomas was recently named to the 2024 All-Big West Preseason Coaches' Team. In 2023, Thomas rang up 67 points on 56 goals and 11 assists. The center led the Tritons in drawn exclusions with 42 and was second on the team in points and goals. Among all Big West players, she ranked seventh in goals and 10th in points. Thomas scored multiple goals in 16 games including a career-best seven in a win against conference opponent Cal State Fullerton. In the annual Harper Cup game against San Diego State, Thomas scored with three seconds left to give the Tritons a 10-9 win and keep the cup in La Jolla for the seventh-consecutive season. Thomas earned several accolades in 2023 including All-America Honorable Mention from the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC), All-Big West Second Team, and Harper Cup MVP. She also won academic awards from the Big West and ACWPC.
'TIS THE PRESEASON
2024 Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. UC Irvine: 47 points, 5 first-place votes
2. Hawai'i: 42, 1
3. Long Beach State: 40, 2
4. UC San Diego: 31
5. UC Davis: 23
6. UC Santa Barbara: 20
7. CSUN: 13
8. Cal State Fullerton: 8
2024 All-Big West Preseason Coaches' Team
Rachel Kowalchick: Sr., Center, Long Beach State
Bia Mantellato Dias: So., Center, Hawai'i
Elisa Portillo: So., Attacker, Long Beach State
Faith Tedesco: Sr., Goalkeeper, UC Irvine
Dorottya Telek: Sr., Center, CSUN
Kendall Thomas: Jr., Center, UC San Diego
Nioka Thomas: Jr., Center, UC Irvine
TAKE ME BACK
In 2023, the Tritons went 14-17 overall and posted a 4-3 Big West record. They finished strong, winning five of their last six games. As the fourth seed in the Big West Championship, UC San Diego defeated fifth-seeded UC Davis in a quarterfinal and fell against top-seeded and eventual conference winner UC Irvine in the semifinal round.
Kendall Thomas,
Caroline Christl and
Courtney Okumura also earned ACWPC All-America Honorable Mention.
Sofia Munatones and
Sydney Munatones joined that trio in gaining Big West postseason recognition.
2024 CWPA NATIONAL POLL
(1/24/24)
1. USC
2. UCLA
3. California
4. Hawai'i
5. Fresno State
6. UC Irvine
7. Stanford
8. Long Beach State
9. Princeton
10. UC San Diego
11. Michigan
12. UC Santa Barbara
13. Arizona State
14. UC Davis
15. Pacific
16. Indiana
17. Harvard
18. San Jose State
19. Loyola Marymount
20. Wagner
21. CSUN
22. Long Island University
23. San Diego State
24. Pomona-Pitzer
25. Biola
Receiving votes: Brown, Marist
UC SAN DIEGO IN THE 2024 CWPA NATIONAL POLL
Week 1 (1/24): 10
Preseason (1/11): 10
HEAD COACH BRAD KREUTZKAMP
Brad Kreutzkamp is in his 15th season as head coach of the UC San Diego women's water polo program in 2024. In 14 seasons at the helm, Kreutzkamp has led UC San Diego to eight Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) championships and eight appearances at the NCAA Championship. He holds an overall record of 278-197 (.585) during his tenure and has been named the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) and WWPA Coach of the Year five times during this stretch.
Full Bio
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the
Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!
GEAR HERE
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories, visit the official team store of the Tritons
here.
WHY THE TRITONS?
The Triton is described as the offspring of Poseidon and Amphitrite, a demigod of the sea with a lower part of the body like that of a fish. It is known as a mighty and fierce sea warrior. Given UC San Diego's close proximity to the Pacific Ocean and its connections with the world-famous Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Triton became our mascot in 1964.
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.
