Courtesy: Cal Athletics
BERKELEY – The No. 2 California men’s water polo team capped off a 4-0 week with Saturday wins of 19-12 over No. 8 Long Beach State and 25-7 against UC Merced at Spieker Aquatics Complex.
The Golden Bears’ (17-3) 44 goals were their most in a two-game stretch, as three players had season-best five-goal performances. Roberto Valera had his second five-goal outing in the win over the Beach (14-9), while both Brady Hoover and William Kelly scored five times in the win over Merced (12-16).
Cal came out firing in its first game of the day against LBSU, scoring six times in the opening period. Jake Howerton, Marci Szatmary and Valera got the Bears out to a 3-0 lead several minutes in. Valera and Szatmary secured braces before the end of the period to give Cal a 6-3 edge heading into the second.
The Bears went on to outscore the Beach in each of the remaining three periods. Valera notched his ninth hat trick of the year before halftime. Casabella converted a penalty and scored on a 6-on-5 in the third quarter, both times keeping Cal ahead by five goals. It was Casabella’s team-leading 10th three-goal effort.
Albert Ponferrada finished with two goals to go with three steals and a game-high four assists. Jake Howerton added two goals of his own. It was Howerton’s 10th goal in five games.
After an hour intermission, the Bears closed out their four-game home stand with a season high 25 goals against Merced, scoring 14 unanswered goals between the first and third quarters. Both Hoover and Kelly scored four of their career-high five goals in the second half. Ryder Hagan and Chris Ball both recorded hat tricks and Itay Batito had two goals along with a game-high four assists.
MPSF action resumes next Saturday when the Bears head south to play No. 1 UCLA for the third time this season.
No. 2 California 19, No. 8 Long Beach State 12
Cal 6 4 4 5 – 19
LBSU 3 3 3 3 – 12
Cal Goals: Roberto Valera 5, Max Casabella 3, Albert Ponferrada 2, Jake Howerton 2, Marton Szatmary 2, Nik Mirkovic 2, Jordi Gascon, Jake Stone, Piero Arienti
LBSU Goals: Evan Cain 4, Caleb Francisco 2, Bruno Chiappini 2, Marc Frigola, Robert Lopez Duart, Abdelrahman Soliman, Nikola Jancic
Cal Saves: Kai Seed 3, Will Kieckhafer 3
LBSU Saves: Liam Ward 9
No. 2 California 25, UC Merced 7
Cal 6 5 7 7 – 25
UCM 2 0 2 3 – 7
Cal Goals: Brady Hoover 5, William Kelly 5, Chris Ball 3, Ryder Hagan 3, Itay Batito 2, Wyatt Mundelius, Sam Untrecht, Jordi Gascon, Marci Szatmary, Carter Loth, Blake Hoover, Piero Arienti
UCM Goals: Killian Nguyen 3, William Pezold 2, Noah Hernandez, Camden Peterson
The Bears lead the Beach 10-6 at the half 💪#GoBears 🐻 pic.twitter.com/iSxfj0ustp
— Cal Water Polo (@CalWaterPolo) October 21, 2023
