University Southern California Trojans
No. 1 USC Water Polo Defeats No. 2 UCLA
June 21, 1999 | Men's Water Polo
November 15, 1998
LOS ANGELES -- Junior 2-meter man Peter Janov scored four goals and junior goaltender Richard McEvoy made 11 saves as the top-ranked USC men's water polo team clinched the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation regular-season title, defeating No. 2 UCLA, 9-6, in front of a standing-room only crowd at McDonald's Swim Stadium, Sunday afternoon. "It was a great victory for us to start off this USC-UCLA week, but more importantly it probably gives us a berth in the NCAAs," USC co-head coach John Williams said. "We played pretty well and with the band and all the fans out here cheering us on, it made for a good day." The Trojans (20-1 overall, 7-0 in the MPSF) struck first just 30 seconds into the match on a two-point goal by senior driver Marko Pintaric. It was Pintaric's ninth two-point goal this season, which leads USC. Junior 2-meter man James Castle scored a minute and a half later to give the Trojans the early 3-0 lead.
The Bruins (15-4, 6-2) stormed back on a goal by sophomore 2-meter man Sean Kern, who tallied three goals on the day. UCLA sophomore driver Adam Wright scored with under a minute left, closing the gap to 3-2 at the end of the first quarter.
USC scored quickly to open the second period as well as Janov scored just 11 seconds into the quarter to put the Trojans up 4-2. Each team would score once more in the period as USC took a 5-3 lead into halftime. The Trojan offense exploded in the third quarter, capitalizing on three 6-on-5 opportunities, including two goals by Janov and one by junior driver Allen Basso. Senior driver Sam Grayeli added a goal for UCLA to make the score, 8-4.
In the fourth quarter, Janov scored again on a breakaway goal with under three minutes remaining, before UCLA roared back, scoring twice in a span of 40 seconds to close the gap to 9-6. After a brief scuffle gave UCLA a two-man advantage, the Bruins threw the ball out of bounds and USC ran out the clock to seal the victory.
USC plays its final MPSF game on Tuesday (Nov. 17) at Long Beach State at 7 p.m., then closes the regular season next Saturday (Nov. 21) against UCLA at the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center at 10 a.m.
UCLA 2 1 1 2 -- 6 USC 3 2 3 1 -- 9UCLA Goals: Sean Kern 3, Adam Wright 2, Sam Grayeli 1.
USC Goals: Peter Janov 4, Allen Basso 1, James Castle 1,
Adam Guerrero 1, Marko Pintaric 1 (2-pointer)
Goalie Saves: Parsa Bonderson (UCLA) 9, Richard McEvoy (USC) 11.
