Men’s Water Polo | December 03, 2022
LOS ANGELES — In a soggy NCAA semifinal battle against its crosstown rival, the No. 1 USC men’s water polo team poured out 15 goals and led by as much as six as the Trojans swamped UCLA 15-12 to take a spot in tomorrow’s national championship game. USC received five goals from Massimo Di Martire, including three in the third quarter, to help propel the Trojans past the Bruins in a rainy battle at Spieker Aquatics Complex today in Berkeley, Calif. USC will now take on host California in the NCAA final tomorrow (Dec. 4) at 3 p.m.
Di Martire had the Trojans up 2-0 on the Bruins early in the game before UCLA was able to close the gap, snarling it up 2-2 at 3:31 in the first frame. That would be as close as UCLA would get, as USC rattled off three straight goals to close out the fires with a crosscage bullet from Marcus Longton, and rocket from downtown by Jake Ehrhardt and a laser from Chris Sturtevant to the top corner to take the Trojans are 5-2 after eight minutes of action.
Constant rain kept a solid layer of steam sitting atop the water throughout the game, but USC was undeterred. Goalie Kyle McKenney made several savvy saves to stave off the Bruins, who may have managed two more in the second but could get no closer than a two-goal margin thanks to a bar-in blast from Luka Brnetic and an absolute ripper from Max Miller to craft a 7-4 USC advantage for halftime.
The third period saw a cascade of goals — 12 in total — and still it was the Trojans in full command. An early strike by the Bruins was followed by a four-goal surge by the Trojans. Di Martire tacked up two in the run, while Tony Nardelli tore one off from set and Carson Kranz nabbed a steal and delivered an opportunistic finish to build out a daunting 11-5 USC lead midway through the third. Two UCLA 5-meter penalty shots and a 6-on-5 conversion kept the Bruins afloat, but Di Martire rose up and blasted his fifth of the day in the final minute of the frame to balloon the USC advantage to 14-8. A rifle shot to the top corner from Ashworth Molthen in the fourth was followed by a string of savvy USC defensive stops, while McKenney made back-to-back stops on close-range Bruins strikes. Up 15-9 with five minutes to play, USC just had to weather the storm, and the Trojans emerged victorious with a ticket to the NCAA title match on their dominant 15-12 final scoreline over their rivals.
NEXT:
USC is on the NCAA title match for the 17th time in the last 18 seasons, facing host California in the championship at 3 p.m. tomorrow (Dec. 4) at Spieker Aquatics Complex in Berkeley, Calif.
NOTABLE:
– With his goal tonight, Ashworth Molthen has scored in 13 consecutive games.
– With his goal tonight, Marcus Longton leads the team in having scored in 24 games this season.
– With two goals tonight, Jake Ehrhardt continues to lead USC with multiple-goal games, now with 18 on the year.
– With five goals tonight. Massimo Di Martire was just one goal off his season best outing of six.
– Now at 20-6 overall, USC has recorded its 28th season with 20-plus wins and first since a 30-win season in 2018
– USC advances to the NCAA final for the 25th time in program history.
– USC will be looking to win its 11th men’s national championship and first under head coach Marko Pintaric.
NCAA TOURNAMENT
SEMIFNAL
USC 15, UCLA 12
Dec. 13, 2022 | Spieker Aquatics Complex (Berkeley, Calif.)
USC 5 – 2 – 7 – 1 = 15
UCLA 2 – 2 – 5 – 3 = 12
SCORING:
USC — Massimo Di Martire 5, Jake Ehrhardt 2, Carson Kranz 2, Marcus Longton, Chris Sturtevant, Luka Brnetic, Max Miller, Tony Nardelli, Ashworth Molthen.
UCLA — Makoto Kenney 3, Jake Cavano 3, Tommy Gruwell 2, Chase Dodd 2, Evan Rosenfeld, Gianpiero Di Martire.
SAVES: Kyle McKenney (USC) 7, Bernardo Maurizi (UCLA) 2.
