University Southern California Trojans
Thursday, December 5
Stockton, Calif.
1:00 PM
USC
vs
Bucknell
Players Mentioned
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Photo by: John McGillen
Trojans Set Up Defense Of NCAA Title In Stockton
December 03, 2019 | Men's Water Polo, Features
WEEKLY RELEASE (PDF)TOURNAMENT CENTRAL2019 NCAA BRACKETTHURSDAY LIVE STREAMSATURDAY & SUNDAY STREAMS
USC is looking to win an 11th national championship.
2019 NCAA Championships
Chris Kjelsden Pool (Stockton, Calif.)
OPENING ROUND: Saturday, Nov. 30
Bucknell def. Harvard 13-12
QUARTERFINALS: Thursday, Dec. 5
1 p.m. — USC (14-5) vs. Bucknell (23-8)
2:45 p.m. — UC Davis (16-7) vs. Pepperdine (24-7)
SEMIFINALS: Saturday, Dec. 7
5 p.m. — Semifinal 1: Stanford (19-2) vs. USC/Bucknell
7 p.m. — Semifinal 2: Pacific (16-5) vs. UCD/PEP
Sunday, Dec. 8Â
Championship Game — 3 p.m.
THIS WEEK
USC sets its course toward defense of its 2018 NCAA Championship this week, firing off for Stockton, Calif., to engage in action at the 2019 National Collegiate Water Polo Championship. The Trojans are aiming for an 11th national championship overall, with eight of those captured during USC's run of 14 straight trips to the tournament. With this 15th consecutive appearance, USC is making its 34th overall NCAA visit. The defending champions will set up camp at Pacific's Chris Kjeldsen Pool this week, with an Opening Round match on the docket first. On Thursday (Dec. 5), USC (14-5) will take on Bucknell (23-8) at 1 p.m. to fight for a spot in the NCAA semifinals against top-seeded Stanford (19-2) at 5 p.m. on Saturday (Dec. 7). That pairing would present a rematch of last year's NCAA final. Victory in the semis would push the Trojans on through to the NCAA title match for the 15th consecutive year. This year's championship game is set for 3 p.m. on Sunday (Dec. 8).
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RANKINGS
The defending NCAA champs opened up 2019 ranked No. 1 in the nation. An early loss sent the Trojans to No. 5 in the land on Sept. 18. USC climbed up to  No. 4 in the Oct. 9 rankings before moving to No. 6 in the Oct. 23 rankings. The Trojans were ranked No. 7 in the Oct. 30 rankings, climbed to No. 4 on Nov. 6, and got back where they began at No. 1 in the land on Nov. 13. As of the latest rankings (Nov. 27), USC sits at No. 2 in the nation.
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NCAA NOTES
The defending NCAA champions are making their 15th consecutive and 34th overall appearance in the national tournament. With eight crowns claimed in the past 14 seasons, USC made history in 2012 as the first collegiate men's water polo team to make eight consecutive appearances and then added to their historic efforts in becoming the first collegiate water polo team ever to win six straight NCAA titles in 2013. USC has made 14 consecutive trips to the NCAA final entering this 2019 campaign. The Trojans are looking to claim their 11th title in 22 years, with the program's first-ever NCAA championship won in 1998. As a university, USC has won 130 national team championships, including 107 NCAA team titles.
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THE CONTENDERS
The 2019 National Collegiate Championship involves a seven-team field, with two at-large teams and five automatic qualifiers as conference champions. The top two seeds — MPSF Tournament champion Stanford and at-large selection and host Pacific — have earned a place in the semifinal round, where they await winners of play-in games. The rest of the field is comprised of at-large selection USC along with conference champions Harvard (Northeast Water Polo Conference), Bucknell (Collegiate Water Polo Association), UC Davis (Western Water Polo Association) and Pepperdine (Golden Coast Conference). In the first Opening Round game on Nov. 30, Bucknell beat Harvard 13-12 to advance to the Dec. 5 Opening Round games at Pacific. The defending champion Trojans (14-5) are making their 15th consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament, and Stanford (20-2) is making its second consecutive trip. The two 2018 finalists are the only holdovers from last year's NCAA field. Bucknell's last appearance was 2016; Harvard, Pacific and UC Davis all made it in 2017; and Peppedine is making its first appearance since 1997.
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The 2019 National Collegiate Championship involves a seven-team field, with two at-large teams and five automatic qualifiers as conference champions. The top two seeds — MPSF Tournament champion Stanford and at-large selection and host Pacific — have earned a place in the semifinal round, where they await winners of play-in games. The rest of the field is comprised of at-large selection USC along with conference champions Harvard (Northeast Water Polo Conference), Bucknell (Collegiate Water Polo Association), UC Davis (Western Water Polo Association) and Pepperdine (Golden Coast Conference). In the first Opening Round game on Nov. 30, Bucknell beat Harvard 13-12 to advance to the Dec. 5 Opening Round games at Pacific. The defending champion Trojans (14-5) are making their 15th consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament, and Stanford (20-2) is making its second consecutive trip. The two 2018 finalists are the only holdovers from last year's NCAA field. Bucknell's last appearance was 2016; Harvard, Pacific and UC Davis all made it in 2017; and Peppedine is making its first appearance since 1997.
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THIS TIME LAST YEAR
In 2018, USC was the No. 2 seed and carried a 28-3 overall record into the NCAA Tournament after picking up an at-large berth. The Trojans had a tough semifinal bout with rival UCLA, with USC getting a game-winner from Sam Slobodien with 22 seconds left to beat the Bruins 8-7 and punch a ticket to a 14th straight NCAA final. There, the Trojans were up against top-seeded host Stanford to fight for the 2018 title. USC exploded to a 6-0 lead and was in cruise control the rest of the way, although Stanford did rally back late to finish out the game as a 14-12 USC victory. Jacob Mercep led the charge with five goals in the win, while goalie Nic Porter hauled in 12 saves. USC had six players earning All-Tournament honors. Jacob Mercep was named the NCAA Tournament MVP and was joined by Marko Vavic and Hannes Daube on the First Team. On the Second Team, USC had Sam Slobodien, Marin Dasic and Nic Porter.Â
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CENTURY CLUB
USC's newest card-carrying member of the 100-goal club is senior Sam Slobodien, who joined junior Jacob Mercep and senior Marin Dasic as a club member with a goal scored at Cal on Nov. 23 to tally his 100th as a Trojans. Mercep's 100th had come the previous week at Cal. And for Dasic, it was his eighth of a final 10 goals scored at the Inland Empire Classic that counted as the 100th goal of his USC career. Dasic now boasts 131 career goals to date to rank No. 21 all-time among career scorers at USC. Mercep now grips 105, and Slobodien is level at 100. Two other Trojans also are closing in on the club, with senior Matt Maier (98) and sophomore Hannes Daube (91) standing tall as the next Trojans in reach of hitting the century mark.
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BY THE NUMBERS
With NCAA action up next, USC has outscored opponents 254-179. The Trojan offense is generating 13.37 goals per game while the defense has allowed 9.42 goals-against per game. Leading the offensive charge so far are junior Jacob Mercep and Marin Dasic with 43 and 39 goals, respectively.  Both have recorded 13 multiple-goal games to date, with Dasic delivering at least one goal in a team-best 18 games. Sophomore Hannes Daube is next on the scoresheet with 33 goals, followed by sophomore Jake Ehrhardt with 30 goals and senior Sam Slobodien with 25. On the defensive end, USC has utilized three goalies. All-American sophomore Nic Porter has capped up in 14 games and averages 10.88 saves per game while giving up 9.68 goals per game. He also has the distinction of registering the most single-game saves by a Trojan goalie since at least 2005 with his 20-save performance vs. Stanford on Nov. 2. Junior Vaios Vlahotasios has appeared in seven games with a 9.67 saves-per-game effort and allowing 9.33 goals-against per game. Jere Ashby has also checked in for two periods of work, having collected nine saves and allowed just two goals in his appearances in the cage. In all, USC has had 16 different Trojans score to date, with five players tallying their first career goals. USC set a season high with 15 different scorers in USC's Sept. 15 win over Concordia.
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SWEEPS WEEK
USC garnered its first MPSF awards sweep of the season on Nov. 4 with goalie Nic Porter named MPSF Player of the Week for the first time and freshman Marcus Longton nabbing USC's first MPSF Newcomer of the Week honor this season. The two first-time picks were instrumental in USC's upset win over No. 1 Stanford and a big victory over San José State in USC's final home games of the year. Nic Porter had a career-high 20 saves — the most single-game saves by a USC goalie since at least 2005 — to help the Trojans upset #1 Stanford 9-8 in an MPSF clash on Saturday.  Porter broke his previous career high of 15 with his 16th save coming against a dangerous Stanford counterattack in the final minute of the third, preserving a two-goal USC lead. His 20th save came with 1:20 remaining to hold a crucial late two-goal USC lead. It was Porter's fifth straight game with double-digit saves and the most since setting a previous career high of 15 almost exactly a year ago. On Sunday, Porter tallied nine saves in a 17-9 USC win over visiting #12 San José State. Marcus Longton had his first career hat trick in USC's win over Stanford, then scored twice against San José State to help make it a winning weekend for the Trojans. Against the Cardinal, Longton scored twice in the first period, going back-to-back to give USC its first lead of the game. Longton added his third to get USC up 7-5 during the third period. Against SJSU, Longton scored in the second and third periods, then added an assist on USC's final goal of the game. Longton had been scoreless in USC's previous three games before the breakout hat trick vs. Stanford.
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SUMMER SUCCESS
Capped up for competition around the globe, several Trojans went big in international waters during the summer of 2019. Captain of the USA's World University Games squad, Jake Ehrhardt helped Team USA to a silver medal at the event in Italy. Soon after, Hannes Daube and Marko Vavic were on-hand for the United States' push to Olympic qualification. Those two Trojans grabbed gold medals at the Pan American Games in Peru to secure the USA men's spot at the 2020 Olympic Games. Daube and Vavic also competed with Team USA at the FINA World Championships in South Korea, where the United States men placed ninth. Freshman Chris Sturtevant also got in on international action over the summer as a member of Great Britain's World University Games squad.Â
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PINTA'S PROGRAM
Marko Pintaric, who has been part of 14 NCAA championships during his 18 years on the USC coaching staff, was named head coach of the USC men's and women's water polo teams on August 29, replacing former head coach Jovan Vavic. An All-American and 1998 NCAA champion as a player at USC, Pintaric served as co-head coach for the USC men for the past three seasons (2016-18), most recently helping the Trojans to the 2018 NCAA Championship. His USC coaching career began as an assistant coach to both the USC men and women in 2001. Pintaric stayed in a dual coaching role until NCAA rules for coaching staff sizes changed in 2015-16, prompting a move to a scouting director role with the women while his assistant coaching role continued with the men for the next four years. Pintaric, who scored the game-winning goal in USC's first-ever national championship, finished his USC playing career before he had the chance to defend the Trojans' 1998 NCAA title. In 18 years since on the coaching staff, he has helped five USC men's water polo teams successfully defend their NCAA crowns. Now, as the head coach, Pintaric has the opportunity to set up defense of another NCAA trophy.
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ALL-AMERICAN LEADERSHIP
Senior captains Marin Dasic, Matt Maier and Sam Slobodien are seasoned, savvy and certain leaders for a USC roster brimming with talent. They are three of eight returning All-Americans, including a power pack of four of 2018 newcomers who exploded onto the scene in their first seasons as Trojans. Sophomores Hannes Daube, Jake Ehrhardt and Nic Porter and junior Jacob Mercep made indelible marks on the stat sheets for USC last year, and they are in full stride for 2019. Aussie goalie Porter and Croatian product Mercep represent possibly one of the most daunting one-two punches out there, as Porter stops shots on the defensive end while Mercep scores them at the other.
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SENIOR STRENGTH
While All-Americans Dasic, Maier and Slobodien are in their final seasons of competition, there are three other noteworthy Trojans in their fourth years with the program. Redshirt juniors Troy Furniss, Luka Karaman and Luke Wyatt also play a hefty leadership role for the group. Their dedication and hard work, too, have lifted all of them into significant contribution roles in the water as well. A lefty, Wyatt punched up 23 goals for the Trojan cause last season, including one in the NCAA Championship game. Karaman and Furniss factored in for 12 goals apiece in 2018.
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CAGE FIGHTERS
In goal, returning All-American Nic Porter has been pushed once more by teammate Vaios Vlahotasios, who was also a newcomer to the USC cage in 2018 and who has proven himself a shot-stopping force to reckon with. Porter and Vlahotasios are a formidable goalie tandem for the Trojans, and are joined by freshman Garrett Allen and sophomore Jere Ashby as USC's talented goalkeeping corps for 2019.
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THE NEW CREW
USC has 11 new Trojans in Cardinal and Gold in 2019. On the first weekend of competition, much of that group earned their stripes. Goalie Jere Ashby checked in for his first time in the cage, while fellow newcomers Matt Harrison, Marcus Longton, Grayden Reynolds and Chris Sturtevant all registered their first goals as Trojans.
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LAST SEASON
The 2018 Trojans reached the NCAA final for the 14th consecutive season and emerged with the trophy for the 10th time in program history. A 14-12 win over host Stanford saw USC claim the national championship and finish out its first 30-win season. At the close of the winning campaign, USC had a program-record 10 Trojans earn All-America status, while newcomer Jacob Mercep scored NCAA Tournament MVP honors after a five-goal outburst in the title match. Mercep and freshman Hannes Daube both picked up All-America First Team honors to lead the pack of 10 honorees in USC's 30-3 season. •
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