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Photo by: Figge Photography
2018 USC Men's Water Polo Season Outlook
August 29, 2018 | Men's Water Polo, Features
Is a 10th NCAA title in the cards for the Trojans in 2018? Head coach Jovan Vavic likes USC's chances.
No collegiate water polo program has done what the USC men have done.
Reaching 13 consecutive NCAA finals as the Trojans have is a feat both impressive and unmatched. It's also, frankly, not good enough.Â
Nine NCAA championships? Not good enough, either.
But, when it comes to adding to those tallies, head coach Jovan Vavic is getting the feeling that this 2018 USC roster is, indeed, good enough to get it done.
"We'll be a very tough team to beat," said Vavic, entering his 24th season at the helm for the USC men, who went 27-4 overall last year in winning the MPSF Championship and finishing as the NCAA runner-up. "I think we are a real contender, and we have great leadership. This will definitely be a team that I enjoy coaching."
Leading the charge for the Trojans is an arsenal of offensive firepower that is, in a word, daunting. USC's five returning members of the 2017 NCAA roster — Zach D'Sa, Marin Dasic and Sam Slobodien, two-time All-American Matt Maier and All-American and 2017 top scorer Marko Vavic — combined for 158 goals, which was 35 percent of USC's total scoring output on the year. Not good enough, by your count? Keep your calculator open. For this 2018 campaign, USC has added in two high-powered transfers that help balloon that tally to 274. Last season as a true freshman at San José State, Jacob Mercep whipped up 93 goals and earned All-American honors. Sawyer Rhodes delivered 23 while at Stanford before both he and Mercep changed course to Troy.
And that doesn't even take into account the other capable returners for the Trojans in Christian Emerson, Troy Furniss, Christian Hockenbury, Luka Karaman, Daniel Leong, Colin Porter and Luke Wyatt. All are armed with at least a year's experience in the Trojan system, and Vavic is eager to see how his talented puzzle pieces come together for 2018.
"If you look at the other teams, we are ahead by far in the amount of goal scorers we are returning," Vavic said. "We also have guys who are really self-motivated and we have a lot of guys who are willing to do what's best for the team. That's a huge positive."
As if snagging an NCAA Championship ring isn't enough motivation, the Trojans boast a leadership unit that Vavic is confident will set — and maintain — a winning course for their team. The lone true senior on the roster is D'Sa, who had a breakout season last year and has stepped solidly into a captain's role in his final year at USC. He'll be flanked by juniors Dasic and Maier as the Trojan captains for 2018, creating a truly respected and accomplished leadership trio for a USC roster dripping with young talent.
"These three are the backbone of our team right now," Vavic said of D'Sa, Dasic and Maier. "They're all good defenders and very, very team oriented."
Vavic takes as much pride in his leadership corps as he does in his goalkeeping corps this season. The Trojans are loaded up with goalies, lifting the level of competition in practice and forcing the USC shooters to continually recalibrate their strategies for hitting the back of the net. As the season openers quickly approach, Vavic has his eyes on Australian Nic Porter and local product Sam Krutonog as his frontrunners. But he's been impressed, too, with the abilities of Matt Moran-Flores, Paul Matt and Vaios Vlahotasios.
All five goalies will be capping up as Trojans for the first time in 2018. Moran-Flores redshirted his first season at USC, while Matt, Krutonog and Porter are true freshmen and Greek import Vlahotasios comes to USC by way of George Washington University. Those newcomers are four of the 15-man class of incoming Trojans for 2018. Two of those new faces you've already heard of — transfers Mercep and Rhodes — while you can be sure to quickly learn the faces of several true freshmen whom Vavic has tabbed as impact players out of the gates.
Most notably, USC gets a sizable boost from U.S. National Team members Hannes Daube and Jake Ehrhardt. Looming at 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-6, respectively, Daube and Ehrhardt are a double dose of danger for opposing teams. Add to that the all-around skill and experience of transfers Mercep and Rhodes and even more international experience from Greece's Orestis Apergi and Aussies Corey Allan and James Kolenda, and the Trojan depth charge becomes even more apparent. Further, the Trojan freshman talent pool grows ever deeper with the addition of California products Mason Farley, Alexander Lansill and Bennett Winther.
"We have more guys now who want to be the ones to take that last shot, but we also have guys who are going to make that last assist," Vavic said. "I think we're in good shape."
Â
Reaching 13 consecutive NCAA finals as the Trojans have is a feat both impressive and unmatched. It's also, frankly, not good enough.Â
Nine NCAA championships? Not good enough, either.
But, when it comes to adding to those tallies, head coach Jovan Vavic is getting the feeling that this 2018 USC roster is, indeed, good enough to get it done.
"We'll be a very tough team to beat," said Vavic, entering his 24th season at the helm for the USC men, who went 27-4 overall last year in winning the MPSF Championship and finishing as the NCAA runner-up. "I think we are a real contender, and we have great leadership. This will definitely be a team that I enjoy coaching."
Leading the charge for the Trojans is an arsenal of offensive firepower that is, in a word, daunting. USC's five returning members of the 2017 NCAA roster — Zach D'Sa, Marin Dasic and Sam Slobodien, two-time All-American Matt Maier and All-American and 2017 top scorer Marko Vavic — combined for 158 goals, which was 35 percent of USC's total scoring output on the year. Not good enough, by your count? Keep your calculator open. For this 2018 campaign, USC has added in two high-powered transfers that help balloon that tally to 274. Last season as a true freshman at San José State, Jacob Mercep whipped up 93 goals and earned All-American honors. Sawyer Rhodes delivered 23 while at Stanford before both he and Mercep changed course to Troy.
And that doesn't even take into account the other capable returners for the Trojans in Christian Emerson, Troy Furniss, Christian Hockenbury, Luka Karaman, Daniel Leong, Colin Porter and Luke Wyatt. All are armed with at least a year's experience in the Trojan system, and Vavic is eager to see how his talented puzzle pieces come together for 2018.
"If you look at the other teams, we are ahead by far in the amount of goal scorers we are returning," Vavic said. "We also have guys who are really self-motivated and we have a lot of guys who are willing to do what's best for the team. That's a huge positive."
As if snagging an NCAA Championship ring isn't enough motivation, the Trojans boast a leadership unit that Vavic is confident will set — and maintain — a winning course for their team. The lone true senior on the roster is D'Sa, who had a breakout season last year and has stepped solidly into a captain's role in his final year at USC. He'll be flanked by juniors Dasic and Maier as the Trojan captains for 2018, creating a truly respected and accomplished leadership trio for a USC roster dripping with young talent.
"These three are the backbone of our team right now," Vavic said of D'Sa, Dasic and Maier. "They're all good defenders and very, very team oriented."
Vavic takes as much pride in his leadership corps as he does in his goalkeeping corps this season. The Trojans are loaded up with goalies, lifting the level of competition in practice and forcing the USC shooters to continually recalibrate their strategies for hitting the back of the net. As the season openers quickly approach, Vavic has his eyes on Australian Nic Porter and local product Sam Krutonog as his frontrunners. But he's been impressed, too, with the abilities of Matt Moran-Flores, Paul Matt and Vaios Vlahotasios.
All five goalies will be capping up as Trojans for the first time in 2018. Moran-Flores redshirted his first season at USC, while Matt, Krutonog and Porter are true freshmen and Greek import Vlahotasios comes to USC by way of George Washington University. Those newcomers are four of the 15-man class of incoming Trojans for 2018. Two of those new faces you've already heard of — transfers Mercep and Rhodes — while you can be sure to quickly learn the faces of several true freshmen whom Vavic has tabbed as impact players out of the gates.
Most notably, USC gets a sizable boost from U.S. National Team members Hannes Daube and Jake Ehrhardt. Looming at 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-6, respectively, Daube and Ehrhardt are a double dose of danger for opposing teams. Add to that the all-around skill and experience of transfers Mercep and Rhodes and even more international experience from Greece's Orestis Apergi and Aussies Corey Allan and James Kolenda, and the Trojan depth charge becomes even more apparent. Further, the Trojan freshman talent pool grows ever deeper with the addition of California products Mason Farley, Alexander Lansill and Bennett Winther.
"We have more guys now who want to be the ones to take that last shot, but we also have guys who are going to make that last assist," Vavic said. "I think we're in good shape."
Â
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