University Southern California Trojans
Undefeated USC Streaks Into MPSF Opener
September 20, 2006 | Men's Water Polo
Sept. 20, 2006
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THIS WEEK: The Trojans have taken over as the nation's No. 1 team as they stand as the only undefeated team in the MPSF and are lugging a 25-game winning streak into their conference opener on Saturday. USC (6-0) faces Long Beach State (1-3) at 12 p.m. on Saturday (Sept. 23) in Long Beach. USC players past and present then take to the pool on Sunday (Sept. 24) for the USC Alumni Game at 12 p.m. at McDonald's Swim Stadium.
RANKINGS: The Trojans are back atop the national rankings after spending three weeks at No. 2. USC spent the last seven weeks of 2005 as the top-ranked team but was displaced in 2006 by California. USC's 10-7 win last week over the Bears popped the Trojans to No. 1 as they enter MPSF action this week. Long Beach State is ranked No. 16.
WEEKEND RECAP: The Trojans knocked off top-ranked California with a decisive 10-7 win that claimed the Northern California Tournament title for the undefeated Trojans last weekend. USC pumped out a 7-6 semifinal win over No. 3 UCLA before overpowering California in the final to stand undefeated at 6-0 on the season. The Trojans and the Bears stayed in stride in the first period for a 2-2 draw entering the second frame, but USC bounced out to a 5-3 lead at halftime. Cal closed back in to make it a 7-6 USC lead on the way into the fourth period, but that's when the Trojans kicked things back into gear. Juan Delgadillo punched in two goals and J.W. Krumpholz added another as USC fired in three straight scores for the Trojans to balloon USC back ahead and help hand the Bears their first loss of the year. The cage was secured once again by junior goalie Adam Shilling, who turned away 10 Cal shots to lock down back-to-back NorCal Tournament titles for the Trojans. Delgadillo led USC with a hat trick, while Thomas Hale and Krumpholz added two goals apiece Tommy Corcoran, Jovan Vranes and Justin Rappel also got to the back of the net for USC in the championship victory. In the semifinal, USC got a good jump on the Bruins, peeling out to a 4-2 lead in the first period and holding that lead after trading goals in the second frame for a 5-3 advantage at halftime. The Trojans extended their lead to 7-4 entering the final period when UCLA punched in a pair in the fourth period, but the Bruins could not get the equalizer before the buzzer, securing USC's place in the championship match against Cal. Aiding the Trojans' cause in the semis along with Vranes' pair of goals was Corcoran with two goals, and single scores from Delgadillo, Krumpholz and Matt Sagehorn. Delgadillo finished with 10 goals in the tournament, followed by seven apiece from Krumpholz and Hale, leading a total of 13 different USC scorers in the tourney. Shilling recorded 22 saves in three games. USC opened the tourney with very lopsided wins: first topping Santa Clara 22-4 and then ebating LMU 13-1.
LONG BEACH STATE NOTES: No. 16 Long Beach State saw its first competition of the year at the Northern California Tournament, where the 49ers lost their first three games before beating Santa Clara 12-10. LBSU took losses to Pacific (14-12), Navy (9-8) and UC Santa Cruz (8-6) to hold a 1-3 record entering this week's match with USC. The 49ers are led in scoring by Jay Gerardi and Jeff Greenwood with nine and six goals, repesctively.
TROJAN-49ER RIVALRY: USC is 49-15 all-time against Long Beach State. The Trojans have won the past 10 meetings with the 49ers, last losing 11-9 on Oct. 15, 2000.
DELGADILLO GETS IT DONE: For the second time in his Trojan career, senior driver Juan Delgadillo has earned the honor of MPSF Player of the Week. Delgadillo scored in each game of the Northern California Tournament, finishing the weekend with a team-high 10 goals. His three-goal performance in the championship game against Cal helped USC secure back-to-back NorCal Tournament titles with a 10-7 win over the Bears.
THE FRESHMAN 17: At the NorCal Tournament, four USC freshmen combined for 17 goals to help the Trojans to their second straight NorCal crown. J.W. Krumpholz led the charge with seven goals, joined by four apiece from Matt Sagehorn and Justin Rappel and two from Anthony Artukovich.
ADD `EM UP: Junior goalie Adam Shilling has proved himself a wall in the cage again this season. He tallied a season-high 10 saves in the NorCal championship game against Cal to help the Trojans to a 10-7 win. He finished the tourney with 22 saves in three games to balloon his season total to 30 with a goals-agasint average of 3.6.
THE REAL SOCAL: USC will play host to the competitive Southern California Tournament this season. The tournament has bounced around between various Southern California universities, and settles this year in the home waters of USC. All nine MPSF squads will be joined by seven other top teams from around the country for the 2006 edition of the esteemed SoCal Tournament. The action is set for Oct. 14-15 in Los Angeles.
ON LOCKDOWN: USC has averaged just over one goal against each period in its first six games of 2006, pinning up solid scores to outweigh opponents 74-26 in the early goings of the season. USC was No. 1 in the nation in team defense last year, averaging 5.0 goals against per game, and the Trojans lead the MPSF this year with 4.33 goals allowed per game.
FULL ARSENAL: The Trojans have an offensive balance this season that has the glaring potential to swamp opponents. Already this season, USC has maxed out with 10 different scorers in a 13-1 win over LMU at the NorCal Tournament. Even in USC's lowest scoring outing -- a 7-6 win over UCLA -- the Trojans had five players get on the board. The widespread scoring started early and is likely to remain heated as a grand total of 14 Trojans have already found their ways to the back of the net during USC's first six games.
THIRD TIME'S A CHARM?: Two Trojan seniors have now claimed two national championships at USC, and are ademately seeking a third. Seniors Thomas Hale and Juan Delgadillo both had a strong hand in the 2003 and 2005 titles. Head coach Jovan Vavic has led the Trojans to the national title three times now (1998, 2003, 2005). Assistant coaches Marko Pintaric and Peter Janov also were both members of that 1998 national champion team.
GETTING STREAKY: USC ended the 2005 season on a 19-game winning streak to set a new record for the longest win streak in program history. The Trojans' MPSF championship victory extended their streak to 17 straight games, tying a win streak that spanned the 2003 and 2004 seasons. The streak is now 21 wins long.
2006 PREVIEW: USC head coach Jovan Vavic, the 2005 National and MPSF Coach of the Year, has hauled in an eye-popping crop of fresh talent for the coming year in an effort to bolster the Trojan roster as USC goes in pursuit of back-to-back NCAA and MPSF titles. Eleven new players -- nine newcomers and four former redshirts -- cap up for USC this year, ready to see their first action in the pool as Trojans. Five incoming athletes traveled overseas during the summer as members of the U.S. Junior National Team, including Senior National Team player J.W. Krumpholz. The Trojans are led this year by three highly respected standout seniors, Juan Delgadillo, Thomas Hale and Pavol Valovic. Balance and depth will be prominent for the 2006 USC squad, and the cage will be manned once again by junior NCAA Co-MVP Adam Shilling.
2005 RECAP: USC finished the 2005 season with a program-best 26-1 record and a record 19-game winning streak after beating Stanford 3-2 in the lowest-scoring NCAA championship game in history. The win marked the USC men's program's third NCAA title. En route to the national crown, USC won the two regular-season tournament titles (NorCal and SoCal tournaments) as well as the MPSF Tournament after an undefeated run through the regular conference season. USC's lone loss of 2005 was a 5-4 loss to Pepperdine during nonconference play.
HOME POOL DOMINATION: USC posted a flawless 2005 record in the waters of McDonald's Swim Stadium. Capping off the season as the tournament host to the MPSF Tournament, USC had some home-pool advantage to go along with that hefty winning streak. The Trojans finished off 2005 with a 9-0 record at home.
VAVIC ON DECK: Head coach Jovan Vavic, one of the top water polo coaches in the country, serves a dual role as the head coach of both the USC men's and women's teams and has led both to national championships twice in the same school year (the men in 1998 and 2003 and the women in 1999 and 2004). Now in his 12th season at the helm of the men's program, Vavic has improved his career coaching record on the men's side to 239-52 (.821) after leading the Trojans to their third-ever NCAA Championship and a program-best 26-1 record in 2005. In his tenure as men's head coach, Vavic boasts a winning record against all opponents on the men's side of the game, recording only two losses in 11 seasons against teams outside the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. He is 176-50 against MPSF teams since 1995. For his success in guiding USC to the NCAA crown in 2005, Vavic was named the AWPCA Men's Coach of the Year. His Trojans also claimed the 2005 MPSF Championship, and Vavic earned himself MPSF Coach of the Year honors as well. At 26-1, USC posted its most wins in history and broke another record by closing out the year on an 19-game winning streak.
