University Southern California Trojans
No. 1 USC Plunges Into 2013 Campaign This Weekend
September 05, 2013 | Men's Water Polo
Sep 5, 2013
SEASON SCHEDULE
2013 ROSTER
THIS WEEK
The defenders of five straight national championships take to the pool this week to begin their 2013 pursuit of sixth consecutive crown. The Trojans carry a 31-game winning streak into this week's opening action, which takes USC to San Diego for competition at the Triton Invitational. The top-ranked Trojans' push to add to last season's undefeated finish begins with four official games this weekend. First up on Saturday (Sept. 7) will be Cal Baptist at 1 p.m. followed by a 4:30 p.m. matchup against No. 13 LMU. That afternoon at 6 p.m., USC will scrimmage No. 4 Cal. On Sunday (Sept. 8), USC takes on No. 12 Air Force at 12:30 p.m. and then squares off against Redlands at 4:30 p.m. That day will wrap up with a scrimmage against No. 2 UCLA.
USC have been ranked No. 1 in the nation since Nov. 9, 2011. The Trojans open 2013 right where they left off, ranked atop the preseason poll for the third straight season. This week's opponents for official games are No. 13 LMU and No. 12 Air Force. Cal Baptist and Redlands are unranked.
WORKING ON A SIX-PACK
USC has played in the NCAA championship game nine times in the past decade. Seven national titles have come during that span. But it isn't just a place in the final that USC is aiming for. No, for 2013 the Trojans have only one mission. USC has won five consecutive titles, and the Trojans can make more history in extending that streak to six this season. No collegiate water polo team has won more than five crowns in a row. USC matched Cal's then-record three-in-a-row by beating the Bears in their home pool in 2010. In 2011, the Trojans etched their place in history with a fourth straight in beating UCLA. And in 2012 USC defended its own pool and beat the Bruins in the final again to stretch that streak to five. Now, the Trojans are looking to pick up a sixth. Stay tuned!
CULTURE CLUB
USC's NCAA championship streak began before this incoming freshman class started high school. So although the 2013 Trojan newcomers haven't experienced winning a national championship firsthand -- yet -- they certainly are familiar with the culture of winning that has been built at Troy. Every other member of the USC roster has at least one NCAA championship ring in his trophy case. The senior class of six Trojans, meanwhile, have accumulated 16 rings among them. Five of those seniors -- Jeremy Davie, Zach Lucas, Mace Rapsey, Nikola Vavic and Connor Virjee -- along with redshirt juniors Rex Butler and Max Hurst-Mendoza were true freshmen in 2010 when USC grabbed its third straight title. Senior goalie James Clark, meanwhile, has never experienced a loss as a Trojan. He began his USC career in the cage last season, when the Trojans rolled to a perfect 29-0 record
TOP GUNS
Senior Nikola Vavic and junior Kostas Genidounias combined for a whopping 151 goals last season. Vavic set the USC record for single-season scoring with 83 goals in 2012, while Genidounias hit the No. 5 all-time mark with 68 goals. In all, four of USC's top five scorers from 2012 are back. Mace Rapsey and Jeremy Davie provided 30 and 29 goals, respectively, last year. Zach Lucas, Rex Butler, Connor Virjee and Marc Vonderweidt each delivered at least 10 goals in 2012.
CAREER COUNTER
Nikola Vavic enters 2013 in the books with 173 career goals, ranking No. 4 all-time in USC scoring history. That puts the senior 48 goals away from taking over the No. 1 spot, occupied by Juraj Zatovic, who scored 220 goals in his four seasons at Troy. Also within reach of making their mark in the USC charts are senior Jeremy Davie and junior Kostas Genidounias, who are even with 99 career goals apiece entering 2013.
AUSTRALIAN TAKEOVER
The Trojan roster again boasts three standout players from Down Under. Goalie James Clark was a 2012 Olympian alongside former Trojan goalie Joel Dennerley. Clark earned All-American status in 2012, while his fellow Aussies Jeremy Davie and Mace Rapsey earned repeat All-American accolades. As key members of the past three runs to NCAA glory, Davie and Rapsey have combined for 175 goals in three seasons of work. Clark averaged 10.1 saves and 6.3 goals against per game in his debut season with the Trojans last year.
2012 RECAP
USC rolled undefeated through its 2012 campaign, winning its eighth MPSF Tournament title and going on to claim its eighth overall national championship with a dramatic comeback win to beat crosstown rival UCLA 11-10 in the Trojans' home pool. Head coach Jovan Vavic was named National Coach of the Year in leading the Trojans to a perfect 29-0 record for the second time in five seasons. National Player of the Year Nikola Vavic led a group of eight All-Americans, including seniors Matt Burton, Michael Rosenthal and Stephen Siri, juniors Jeremy Davie and Mace Rapsey and sophomore Kostas Genidounias. USC was ranked No. 1 from start to finish in 2012, with Nikola Vavic setting a new USC with 83 goals scored in the season en route to being named a finalist for the Cutino Award. In all, the Trojan offense -- charged by 21 different scorers -- averaged 14.3 goals per game, while the defense again led the nation with just 5.9 goals against per game. USC outscored opponents 416-170 in 2012, marking the most goals scored in a year by the Trojans since at least 1983. •
