University Southern California Trojans
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Water Polo
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/ Men's Water Polo
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/ Men's Water Polo
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/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
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UT
/ 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
G
/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
UT
/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
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/ Men's Water Polo
DR
/ Men's Water Polo
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/ Men's Water Polo
Photo by: Figge Photography
2019 USC Men's Water Polo Season Outlook
September 12, 2019 | Men's Water Polo, Features
The top-ranked Trojans begin defense of their 10th NCAA title this weekend.
A former All-American who scored the game-winning goal in USC's first-ever national championship, Marko Pintaric 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.
The Trojans roared to the program's first 30-win season last season, with Pintaric serving as a co-head coach. With a program-record 10 All-Americans on the roster, the 2018 Trojans won it all in a 14-12 championship victory over host Stanford, collecting USC's 10th men's national championship.
As this 2019 men's season unfurls, USC is ranked No. 1 in the nation and Pintaric stands atop the program as USC's new men's and women's head coach. With 20 years of experience at Troy, Pintaric is primed to lead his Trojans into battle in pursuit of yet another national championship. Coming into 2019, the USC men have reached an unprecedented 14 consecutive NCAA title matches. That rally was sparked by a 2005 championship, highlighted by a run of six straight championships won from 2008-2013 and then capped with this latest 2018 trophy. The plan, as ever, is to add to the collection in 2019.
"The momentum from last year's championship is still with us," Pintaric said. "We have the personnel to achieve it. We return a big part of our team from last year, with players who know the system and who know what it takes to get into the final. That's always the goal in this program — to reach the final and win a national championship."
It's a balanced unit of veterans and new faces for 2019. 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. Daube, Ehrhardt and junior Marko Vavic also combine forces in training with the U.S. National Team, with Daube and Vavic on-hand over the summer to help Team USA qualify for the Olympic Games, while Ehrhart captained the USA's World University Games team to a silver medal. 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.
For Pintaric, his trio of captains set the tone and provide leadership in and out of the water.
"They've played in three championships and won it all last year," Pintaric said of Dasic, Maier and Slobodien. "They have set the goal to get the team with them to their fourth final. They're doing a great job of being a coach's voice in the locker room, communicating our team culture and teaching the new guys what USC is all about.
"This program achieves its goals through hard work and team effort. We put the team above personal interests. I'm very happy with the way this group is progressing. They are very united in what we're trying to accomplish inside and outside the water. Our veterans are playing an integral role in keeping the team chemistry at a high level."
While Dasic, Maier and Slobodien are in their final seasons of competition, there are three other Trojans entering 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.
With a year under their caps, several other returning Trojans are primed to reach a raised bar in 2019. Alexander Lansill and James Kolenda each enter their sophomore seasons slated for bigger roles in the USC gameplan. So, too, will redshirt freshmen Corey Allan and Bennett Winther see their hard work and diligence pay off as they dig in for their first official action as Trojans.
In goal, returning All-American Porter will be 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 as well. 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.
Goalie Allen is one of 11 new Trojans set to see their first splashdown in Cardinal and Gold.
"With this new group as a whole we have every position covered," Pintaric said. "Grayden Reynolds is working extremely hard as a center, and Henry Saunders is very good addition, very physical and very studious. We also have a great outside shooting threat in Chris Sturtevant, Stefan Vavic and Marcus Longton — they've proven themselves as good offensive threats. I'm also happy with our blue-collar players like Matt Harrison, Chris Agliozzo, Emmett Pernecky, Payne Fama and Patrick Burke who bring in competition in every aspect of the game."
The top-ranked Trojans' 2019 campaign kicks off this weekend, with USC making a trip to the Inland Empire Classic. USC opens season on Saturday (Sept. 14) with a 12 p.m. visit to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, followed by a 1:20 p.m. matchup with Whittier. On Sunday (Sept. 15), USC heads to La Verne to square off against No. 4 UC Santa Barbara at 10:20 a.m. The Trojans wrap the visit with a 1 p.m. clash against Concordia.
The Trojans' home opener is just a week away, with Long Beach State coming to USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center at 5 p.m. on Sept. 19.
The Trojans roared to the program's first 30-win season last season, with Pintaric serving as a co-head coach. With a program-record 10 All-Americans on the roster, the 2018 Trojans won it all in a 14-12 championship victory over host Stanford, collecting USC's 10th men's national championship.
As this 2019 men's season unfurls, USC is ranked No. 1 in the nation and Pintaric stands atop the program as USC's new men's and women's head coach. With 20 years of experience at Troy, Pintaric is primed to lead his Trojans into battle in pursuit of yet another national championship. Coming into 2019, the USC men have reached an unprecedented 14 consecutive NCAA title matches. That rally was sparked by a 2005 championship, highlighted by a run of six straight championships won from 2008-2013 and then capped with this latest 2018 trophy. The plan, as ever, is to add to the collection in 2019.
"The momentum from last year's championship is still with us," Pintaric said. "We have the personnel to achieve it. We return a big part of our team from last year, with players who know the system and who know what it takes to get into the final. That's always the goal in this program — to reach the final and win a national championship."
It's a balanced unit of veterans and new faces for 2019. 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. Daube, Ehrhardt and junior Marko Vavic also combine forces in training with the U.S. National Team, with Daube and Vavic on-hand over the summer to help Team USA qualify for the Olympic Games, while Ehrhart captained the USA's World University Games team to a silver medal. 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.
For Pintaric, his trio of captains set the tone and provide leadership in and out of the water.
"They've played in three championships and won it all last year," Pintaric said of Dasic, Maier and Slobodien. "They have set the goal to get the team with them to their fourth final. They're doing a great job of being a coach's voice in the locker room, communicating our team culture and teaching the new guys what USC is all about.
"This program achieves its goals through hard work and team effort. We put the team above personal interests. I'm very happy with the way this group is progressing. They are very united in what we're trying to accomplish inside and outside the water. Our veterans are playing an integral role in keeping the team chemistry at a high level."
While Dasic, Maier and Slobodien are in their final seasons of competition, there are three other Trojans entering 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.
With a year under their caps, several other returning Trojans are primed to reach a raised bar in 2019. Alexander Lansill and James Kolenda each enter their sophomore seasons slated for bigger roles in the USC gameplan. So, too, will redshirt freshmen Corey Allan and Bennett Winther see their hard work and diligence pay off as they dig in for their first official action as Trojans.
In goal, returning All-American Porter will be 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 as well. 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.
Goalie Allen is one of 11 new Trojans set to see their first splashdown in Cardinal and Gold.
"With this new group as a whole we have every position covered," Pintaric said. "Grayden Reynolds is working extremely hard as a center, and Henry Saunders is very good addition, very physical and very studious. We also have a great outside shooting threat in Chris Sturtevant, Stefan Vavic and Marcus Longton — they've proven themselves as good offensive threats. I'm also happy with our blue-collar players like Matt Harrison, Chris Agliozzo, Emmett Pernecky, Payne Fama and Patrick Burke who bring in competition in every aspect of the game."
The top-ranked Trojans' 2019 campaign kicks off this weekend, with USC making a trip to the Inland Empire Classic. USC opens season on Saturday (Sept. 14) with a 12 p.m. visit to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, followed by a 1:20 p.m. matchup with Whittier. On Sunday (Sept. 15), USC heads to La Verne to square off against No. 4 UC Santa Barbara at 10:20 a.m. The Trojans wrap the visit with a 1 p.m. clash against Concordia.
The Trojans' home opener is just a week away, with Long Beach State coming to USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center at 5 p.m. on Sept. 19.
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Saturday, November 18
