Men's Water Polo | November 11, 2017

WESTWOOD, CALIF. — After an intensely played stretch of regulation and overtime, it was a 5-meter penalty shot awarded to host UCLA in sudden death that spelled doom for the visiting Trojans. With the game locked up at 11-11, UCLA was awarded the chance to end things on its first possession and did so, converting and finishing the game as a 12-11 Bruin win. The loss puts USC at 22-3 overall and has the Trojans as the No. 4 seed in the upcoming MPSF Tournament, hosted by Stanford Nov. 17-19.

USC never trailed in the first half, taking an early 2-0 lead on goals from Marko Vavic and James Walters before shrugging off two tie-ups forced by the Bruins. By halftime, USC was gripping a 5-4 lead as Lazar Pasuljevic, Zach D'Sa and Lachlan Edwards got on the scoresheet for the Trojans.

USC would hold a two-goal advantage early in the second half after a strike from Matteo Morelli on USC's opening possession, only to see the Bruins convert back-to-back power plays to level it before tacking up the go-ahead goal for a 7-6 lead in the final minute of the third. D'Sa would send in the equalizer on a USC 6-on-5 next, and the Trojans told an 8-7 lead on a blast from Vavic soon after. Again, UCLA would issue a response, snarling it up at 8-8 with yet another converted 6-on-5. In the fourth, Blake Edwards pumped USC up to a 9-8 lead off a power play, only to see UCLA earn and finish a power play of its own, locking things at 9-9 with 3:00 left in regulation. 

Neither team would be able to move ahead in that next stretch, bringing up overtime in UCLA's home pool. After over two minutes of silence at both ends, Blake Edwards broke the silence with a rocket that nudged USC ahead 10-9. That lead would last all of nine seconds, with the Bruins answering right back to make it 10-10 on the way into the next three minutes of OT. This time, it was UCLA that knocked in the opening goal, moving into an 11-10 lead on the Bruins' first possession. With 38 seconds left in the frame, Lachlan Edwards ripped off a sizzling backhand that knotted the game at 11-11 — a scoreline that would hold up to bring up sudden death. That's where UCLA would benefit from an early 5-meter penalty called against the Trojans, lining up the Bruins for the finish that sealed a 12-11 UCLA win.

USC now sets up for the MPSF Tournament, hosted by Stanford, with the Trojans holding the No. 4 seed at the event. That puts USC up against Penn State Behrend in a 10 a.m. opener on Friday (Nov. 17) before taking on host Stanford at 3 p.m. that afternoon. Two wins on Friday would put the Trojans in the MPSF final at 1 p.m. on Sunday (Nov. 19). A loss on Friday would relegate the Trojans to fight it out for a third-place finish.

#4 UCLA 12, #2 USC 11 (3OT-SD)
Nov. 11, 2017 | Spieker Aquatics Center (Westwood, Calif.)
USC   3 - 2 - 3 - 1 — 1 - 1 — 0 = 11
UCLA 2 - 2 - 4 - 1 — 1 - 1 — 1 = 12

SCORING: 
USC — Marko Vavic 2, Zach D'Sa 2, Lachlan Edwards 2, Blake Edwards 2, James Walters, Lazar Pasuljevic, Matteo Morelli.
UCLA — Max Irving 4, Alex Roelse 4, Nicolas Saveljic 2, Chasen Travisano, Warren Snyder.

SAVES: McQuin Baron (USC) 8, Alex Wolf (UCLA) 14.