Sunday, October 14
Stanford, CA
2:30 PM
USC
10
at
9
Stanford
Players Mentioned
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
G
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water PoloPhoto by: Catharyn Hayne
No. 3 USC Avenges Only Loss Of 2018 With 10-9 Stunner At No. 1 Stanford
October 14, 2018 | Men's Water Polo, Features
Trojans claim the Mountain Pacific Invitational championship in a wild finish in Palo Alto.
PALO ALTO, CALIF. — The No. 3 USC men's water polo team exacted revenge in Palo Alto today, taking down top-ranked host Stanford in the Trojans' second try at Avery Aquatic Center this season. The Trojans and the Cardinal clashed in today's Mountain Pacific Invitational championship game, where USC led by as many as four goals before Stanford leveled it in the final minute. USC's Jacob Mercep delivered the winner with five seconds to go, setting up the Trojan defense for one final stop to preserve a 10-9 victory that avenges a loss taken the previous weekend to Stanford. USC is now 22-1 overall.
USC made an early statement when freshman goalie Nic Porter stuffed a Stanford 5-meter penalty shot attempt. The Trojan offense then ripped in back-to-back goals — Hannes Daube's first of a four-goal outing for the freshman, and a counterattack blast from senior Zach D'Sa — for a 2-0 advantage. Stanford closed back in and got it tangled up at 2-2 next, but USC kicked back into gear when Danny Leong zipped in a laser for a 3-2 lead by the end of the first. That Leong goal lit the fuse on a four-goal scoring blitz from the Trojans. In the second, Daube delivered again, followed by a rocket from Marko Vavic. Daube, again, drummed up a ripper, and USC was up 6-2 on the Cardinal. Stanford snapped the run with a goal next, but USC fired off another to go up 7-3 on a nearside finish from Marin Dasic. Stanford got one more to go before the break, and USC gripped a 7-4 advantage at halftime.
After Jacob Mercep got on the scoresheet with a skipper to get USC up 8-4, the hosts were able to carve down the deficit with back-to-back goals next, and it was 8-6 entering the fourth period. But Daube wasn't done. The freshman zipped in a score from the top to make it 9-6 USC early in the fourth. Stanford mustered up two more to cut the margin to one, then called timeout in the final minute to set things up. The equalizer would come for the hosts on a score with 22 seconds left. The Trojans called their final timeout next, and with numerous options it would be Mercep in position to take the chance. He'd wind up and fire to the far corner, finding the back of the net to nudge USC ahead 10-9 with five seconds remaining in regulation. The Trojan defense came up with one final takeaway next, and the buzzer sounded on a big USC victory over top-ranked Stanford.
USC now returns to Southern California for a couple nonconference bouts. The Trojans visit Long Beach State for a 1 p.m. matchup on Saturday (Oct. 20) before setting up to host Pepperdine at 1 p.m. on Sunday (Oct. 21) at Uytengsu Aquatics Center.
2018 MOUNTAIN PACIFIC INVITATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#3 USC 10, #1 Stanford 9
Oct. 14, 2018 | Avery Aquatic Center (Palo Alto, Calif.)
USC 3 - 4 - 1 - 2 = 10
STAN 2 - 2 - 2 - 3 = 9
SCORING:
USC — Hannes Daube 4, Jacob Mercep 2, Zach D'Sa, Danny Leong, Marko Vavic, Marin Dasic.
STAN — Bennett Williams 4, Blake Parrish 2, Ben Hallock 2, AJ Rossman.
SAVES: Nic Porter (USC) 10, Oliver Lewis (STAN) 12.
USC made an early statement when freshman goalie Nic Porter stuffed a Stanford 5-meter penalty shot attempt. The Trojan offense then ripped in back-to-back goals — Hannes Daube's first of a four-goal outing for the freshman, and a counterattack blast from senior Zach D'Sa — for a 2-0 advantage. Stanford closed back in and got it tangled up at 2-2 next, but USC kicked back into gear when Danny Leong zipped in a laser for a 3-2 lead by the end of the first. That Leong goal lit the fuse on a four-goal scoring blitz from the Trojans. In the second, Daube delivered again, followed by a rocket from Marko Vavic. Daube, again, drummed up a ripper, and USC was up 6-2 on the Cardinal. Stanford snapped the run with a goal next, but USC fired off another to go up 7-3 on a nearside finish from Marin Dasic. Stanford got one more to go before the break, and USC gripped a 7-4 advantage at halftime.
After Jacob Mercep got on the scoresheet with a skipper to get USC up 8-4, the hosts were able to carve down the deficit with back-to-back goals next, and it was 8-6 entering the fourth period. But Daube wasn't done. The freshman zipped in a score from the top to make it 9-6 USC early in the fourth. Stanford mustered up two more to cut the margin to one, then called timeout in the final minute to set things up. The equalizer would come for the hosts on a score with 22 seconds left. The Trojans called their final timeout next, and with numerous options it would be Mercep in position to take the chance. He'd wind up and fire to the far corner, finding the back of the net to nudge USC ahead 10-9 with five seconds remaining in regulation. The Trojan defense came up with one final takeaway next, and the buzzer sounded on a big USC victory over top-ranked Stanford.
USC now returns to Southern California for a couple nonconference bouts. The Trojans visit Long Beach State for a 1 p.m. matchup on Saturday (Oct. 20) before setting up to host Pepperdine at 1 p.m. on Sunday (Oct. 21) at Uytengsu Aquatics Center.
2018 MOUNTAIN PACIFIC INVITATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
#3 USC 10, #1 Stanford 9
Oct. 14, 2018 | Avery Aquatic Center (Palo Alto, Calif.)
USC 3 - 4 - 1 - 2 = 10
STAN 2 - 2 - 2 - 3 = 9
SCORING:
USC — Hannes Daube 4, Jacob Mercep 2, Zach D'Sa, Danny Leong, Marko Vavic, Marin Dasic.
STAN — Bennett Williams 4, Blake Parrish 2, Ben Hallock 2, AJ Rossman.
SAVES: Nic Porter (USC) 10, Oliver Lewis (STAN) 12.
Carson Kranz: Trojans Live 11.25.24
Monday, November 25
Stefan Brankovic | Trojans Live 09.23.24
Monday, September 23
Men's Water Polo - USC 13, UCLA 9: Highlights (11/18/23)
Saturday, November 18
Men’s Water Polo - USC 20, Augustana 4 : Highlights (11/17/23)
Friday, November 17
