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IRVINE, Calif. --- UC Irvine faces a schedule front-loaded with road games before playing at home for much of the remainder of the season beginning in October.
The Anteaters, led by ninth-year head coach Marc Hunt, journey east to open the season in Brown University's Bruno Fall Classic Sept. 7-8, facing MIT, St. Francis, Brown and Harvard in Providence, R.I.
UCI then competes in the Inland Empire Classic at Redlands Sept. 14-15 and is on the road at Chapman for a Sept. 18 game.
The 'Eaters journey to Berkeley for the NorCal Tournament Sept. 21-22 to face several national powers before opening Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play Oct. 5 at USC, which has won the last five national titles.
The home schedule begins with the UC Irvine Invitational Oct. 12-13, featuring the nation's top teams descending on the area for competition at the Anteater Aquatics Complex and Corona del Mar High School.
UCI has MPSF home games against Long Beach State Oct. 24, UCLA Oct. 25, Stanford Nov. 8 and Pepperdine Nov. 24, in addition to a non-conference contest versus UC San Diego Nov. 9 at the Anteater Aquatics Complex.
The MPSF Championship is at Stockton Nov. 29-Dec. 1 with the NCAA Championship at Stanford Dec. 7-8.
Senior drivers Mitch Wise and Bojan Hrlec, who both received All-America recognition in 2012, headline the list of returning players for UCI, which finished 14-12 overall last season.
Wise, who scored 62 goals last season, has been a third-team All-American each of the past two seasons and received an invitation to train with the USA Senior National Team this past off-season.
Hrlec led the 'Eaters with 63 goals as a JC transfer last year when he received All-America honorable mention recognition.
"They are both scorers and are going to learn to play off of each other," Hunt said. "They are different types of players, but both hard to stop."
UCI has plenty of depth at center with junior Jacob Mourer, sophomore Chris Swieca and the addition of sophomore Tyler Mancuso, a transfer from Iona. Mourer scored 34 goals and Swieca 18 for the 'Eaters last season.
"Our 1-2 punch is a left-handed center in Jacob and a very powerful center in Mancuso," Hunt said.
"I'm expecting some standout performances from Larson Pfeil, younger brother of Nick Pfeil (a senior for UCI last season)," Hunt stated. "Larson and former Corona del Mar High standout Justin Papa (a junior) will take the task of center-defender.
"To augment our defense, and probably the surprise of the year, is the addition of true freshman Kyle Trush from Corona del Mar High. We originally entertained the idea to redshirt him, but we are probably going to see him elevated to our top defender," Hunt added.
"The last of Ted Newland's grandsons to play at UCI, junior Alan Robertson will help anchor the team as a co-captain with Mitch Wise," Hunt said. "Alan brings an intelligence and maturity to training. His intensity is unmatched and he helps bring the team together with a very competitive attitude."
Robertson, the fifth Newland grandson to compete for the 'Eaters, scored 23 goals last season. Newland was UCI's head coach for 39 seasons, compiling 714 victories from 1966-2004.
UCI returns all three goalies from last season. Senior Alex Kazmier had 161 saves in 25 games in 2012, junior Michael Bailey had 45 stops in 12 games and junior Dylan Peterson made 48 saves in 11 games.
"All three of them have the ability to have an outstanding year," Hunt said. "We've seen some great progression over the past year and the strength we have is the ability to use all three. It's great to have the luxury of depth at that position," he added.
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TICKET INFORMATION
Regular-season, single-opponent games are free of charge for spectators. For information on the UC Irvine Invitational pricing or additional ticket information, please click HERE.
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ANTEATER ATHLETIC FUND
UC Irvine Athletics is proud of our student-athletes and the way in which they represent UCI in local, regional, and national competition. Join the Anteater Athletic Fund and feel the pride as part of 'Eater Nation! CLICK HERE to make a gift in support of the Men's Water Polo program.
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UC Irvine fans can easily download the official UC Irvine Men's Water Polo schedule directly into their calendar and mobile devices by clicking HERE. By subscribing to the official UC Irvine Men's Water Polo Flogs calendar you'll always be in the loop as the calendars update automatically with any game changes or updates.
ABOUT FLOGS
Flogs and UC Irvine Athletics have partnered to offer a free calendar too for UC Irvine fans. By subscribing to the official calendar you'll always be in the loop as the calendars update automatically with any game changes or updates. Fans can customize their calendar by choosing which events to add or subscribe to the entire season. It's free and easy to use. If you're a first time user you just need to create a free user account to get started. All team schedules are offered HERE.
