University Southern California Trojans
Saturday, September 2
Los Angeles, CA
10:20 AM
USC
vs
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
UT
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
UT
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
Photo by: Frank Hoerman
No. 2 Trojans Open 2017 With Doubleheader Saturday In Westwood
August 30, 2017 | Men's Water Polo, Features
USC heads across town to the UCLA Mini Invitational on Saturday to face Claremont-Mudd-Scripps & Pomona-Pitzer.
THIS WEEK
USC kicks off its 2017 campaign this week with a double dose of official action at the UCLA Mini Invitational. Ranked No. 2 in the nation to start the season, the Trojans will line up for two games on Saturday (Sept. 2) at Spieker Aquatic Center in Westwood. First, USC will clash with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at 10:20 a.m., then will turn right around and take on Pomona-Pitzer at 11:40 a.m. USC is set to end the day with a 2:20 p.m. scrimmage against host UCLA.
RANKINGS
USC starts its 2017 journey holding strong at No. 2 in the preseason national rankings. The Trojans wrapped 2016 at No. 2 in the land after reaching the NCAA final for the 12th consecutive season.
ALL-AMERICAN EDGE
With eight All-Americans back in the water for 2017, USC head coach Jovan Vavic has more All-American talent than he has room for in his starting lineup. In that core group of decorated All-Americans, seven are seniors. Two of them are repeat team captains — James Walters and returning top scorer Blake Edwards — both two-time All-Americans. One is Cutino Award winner McQuin Baron, who will soon be taking over as USC's all-time saves leader. Three more Trojan All-Americans — Matteo Morelli, Lachlan Edwards and Grant Stein — accumulated over 100 combined goals last year. The seventh — standing out as the brains of the group — is NCAA Elite 90 Award winner Mihajlo Milicevic, who stars as a stingy defender for the Trojan cause. The only first-time All-American in the crew is on his way in to his second season at USC, as sophomore Matt Maier returns to the pool as the 2016 MPSF Newcomer of the Year.
DEPTH CHARGE
As valuable as USC's sizeable senior class is, Jovan Vavic has his eyes on a few other returners as linchpins in this season's efforts. Now sophomores, Olympian Thomas Dunstan, MPSF Newcomer of the Year Matt Maier and FINA Junior World Championship silver medalist Marin Dasic are even more prepared to be impact players for the Trojans. Junior Zach D'Sa and redshirt sophomore Daniel Leong both had breakout seasons last year and are primed for major playing time in 2017. Redshirt junior Tim Leong has also maneuvered his way into an increased role, while redshirt sophomore Sam Slobodien, too, made major strides last season and during the summer, lining himself up for extra duty at the two-meter mark along with fellow centers Maier, James Walters and Lachlan Edwards. In all, the Trojans return 90 percent of their scoring production from last season as well as their entire goalkeeping corps.
CLIMB ON
USC senior McQuin Baron is poised to take over as USC's most prolific goalie. With 817 saves collected in his first three seasons, Baron is just 39 saves away from becoming USC's all-time saves leader. Also charging up the career charts are a set of All-American senior sharpshooters. Blake Edwards, Matteo Morelli and Grant Stein all boast 110 career goals as they enter their final season as Trojans. Fellow senior Lachlan Edwards is just a step behind, gripping 108 career goals to date to rank No. 33 on USC's scoring chart.
NEW CREW
Among the talented Trojan youth movement, Vavic taps redshirt freshmen Luke Wyatt, Chas Hornecker and Luka Karaman and true freshmen Marko Vavic and Christian Hockenbury as the brightest stars who are seeing the benefits of their hard work and skills developed in the run-up to this 2017 campaign. At 6-foot-6 and with U.S. National Team experience, Marko Vavic stands to be a quick and powerful fit into his father's gameplan.
TROJAN TRAVELS
In July, the Trojans took a trip through international waters, soaking up some sun while splashing down in seas, pools and rivers across France, Italy, Croatia and Montenegro. The Trojans set up camp in Nice (France), Recco (Italy), Split (Croatia) and Herceg Novi (Montenegro) while scrimmaging local teams and training for the upcoming 2017 season back in the USA. That European adventure brought the entire USC squad together as a team, offering up invaluable opportunities to gel in the water and out. In fact, the last three USC teams to take a similar summer training trip to Europe came back to the USA and won the national championship that same year. It's a theme that bodes well for the 2017 Trojans, who boast a senior class that is 13 Trojans strong and who have 11 redshirt freshmen and newcomers lined up for their first official action this season.
AND NOW, THIS
Now in his 23rd year at the helm of the USC water polo program, Jovan Vavic has guided the Trojans to the NCAA title match every season for the past 12 years. He's captured seven championships during that stretch. Last season, USC manufactured a 24-2 overall record, losing just one road game during the regular season, winning the MPSF Championship and then falling in a frustrating NCAA final that went to overtime in its opponent's home pool. This year, the Trojans are lined up as host of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, set for Dec. 2-3 at USC's own Uytengsu Aquatics Center. The last time the Trojans hosted the national championship, they capped it off by hoisting the 2012 championship trophy. This year, USC aims to once again successfully defend the Trojans' home waters while adding a 10th NCAA trophy to the men's collection of championships.
USC kicks off its 2017 campaign this week with a double dose of official action at the UCLA Mini Invitational. Ranked No. 2 in the nation to start the season, the Trojans will line up for two games on Saturday (Sept. 2) at Spieker Aquatic Center in Westwood. First, USC will clash with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at 10:20 a.m., then will turn right around and take on Pomona-Pitzer at 11:40 a.m. USC is set to end the day with a 2:20 p.m. scrimmage against host UCLA.
RANKINGS
USC starts its 2017 journey holding strong at No. 2 in the preseason national rankings. The Trojans wrapped 2016 at No. 2 in the land after reaching the NCAA final for the 12th consecutive season.
ALL-AMERICAN EDGE
With eight All-Americans back in the water for 2017, USC head coach Jovan Vavic has more All-American talent than he has room for in his starting lineup. In that core group of decorated All-Americans, seven are seniors. Two of them are repeat team captains — James Walters and returning top scorer Blake Edwards — both two-time All-Americans. One is Cutino Award winner McQuin Baron, who will soon be taking over as USC's all-time saves leader. Three more Trojan All-Americans — Matteo Morelli, Lachlan Edwards and Grant Stein — accumulated over 100 combined goals last year. The seventh — standing out as the brains of the group — is NCAA Elite 90 Award winner Mihajlo Milicevic, who stars as a stingy defender for the Trojan cause. The only first-time All-American in the crew is on his way in to his second season at USC, as sophomore Matt Maier returns to the pool as the 2016 MPSF Newcomer of the Year.
DEPTH CHARGE
As valuable as USC's sizeable senior class is, Jovan Vavic has his eyes on a few other returners as linchpins in this season's efforts. Now sophomores, Olympian Thomas Dunstan, MPSF Newcomer of the Year Matt Maier and FINA Junior World Championship silver medalist Marin Dasic are even more prepared to be impact players for the Trojans. Junior Zach D'Sa and redshirt sophomore Daniel Leong both had breakout seasons last year and are primed for major playing time in 2017. Redshirt junior Tim Leong has also maneuvered his way into an increased role, while redshirt sophomore Sam Slobodien, too, made major strides last season and during the summer, lining himself up for extra duty at the two-meter mark along with fellow centers Maier, James Walters and Lachlan Edwards. In all, the Trojans return 90 percent of their scoring production from last season as well as their entire goalkeeping corps.
CLIMB ON
USC senior McQuin Baron is poised to take over as USC's most prolific goalie. With 817 saves collected in his first three seasons, Baron is just 39 saves away from becoming USC's all-time saves leader. Also charging up the career charts are a set of All-American senior sharpshooters. Blake Edwards, Matteo Morelli and Grant Stein all boast 110 career goals as they enter their final season as Trojans. Fellow senior Lachlan Edwards is just a step behind, gripping 108 career goals to date to rank No. 33 on USC's scoring chart.
NEW CREW
Among the talented Trojan youth movement, Vavic taps redshirt freshmen Luke Wyatt, Chas Hornecker and Luka Karaman and true freshmen Marko Vavic and Christian Hockenbury as the brightest stars who are seeing the benefits of their hard work and skills developed in the run-up to this 2017 campaign. At 6-foot-6 and with U.S. National Team experience, Marko Vavic stands to be a quick and powerful fit into his father's gameplan.
TROJAN TRAVELS
In July, the Trojans took a trip through international waters, soaking up some sun while splashing down in seas, pools and rivers across France, Italy, Croatia and Montenegro. The Trojans set up camp in Nice (France), Recco (Italy), Split (Croatia) and Herceg Novi (Montenegro) while scrimmaging local teams and training for the upcoming 2017 season back in the USA. That European adventure brought the entire USC squad together as a team, offering up invaluable opportunities to gel in the water and out. In fact, the last three USC teams to take a similar summer training trip to Europe came back to the USA and won the national championship that same year. It's a theme that bodes well for the 2017 Trojans, who boast a senior class that is 13 Trojans strong and who have 11 redshirt freshmen and newcomers lined up for their first official action this season.
AND NOW, THIS
Now in his 23rd year at the helm of the USC water polo program, Jovan Vavic has guided the Trojans to the NCAA title match every season for the past 12 years. He's captured seven championships during that stretch. Last season, USC manufactured a 24-2 overall record, losing just one road game during the regular season, winning the MPSF Championship and then falling in a frustrating NCAA final that went to overtime in its opponent's home pool. This year, the Trojans are lined up as host of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, set for Dec. 2-3 at USC's own Uytengsu Aquatics Center. The last time the Trojans hosted the national championship, they capped it off by hoisting the 2012 championship trophy. This year, USC aims to once again successfully defend the Trojans' home waters while adding a 10th NCAA trophy to the men's collection of championships.
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