FOLLOW THE ANTEATERS
No. T-12 UC Irvine (8-11, 1-3) vs. No. 5 Long Beach State (19-5, 4-0)
Saturday, Nov. 14 | 12 p.m. | Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center
Live stats | Live video (ESPN+)

The No. 12 Anteaters will their home regular season slate with a game at No. 5 Long Beach State Saturday, Nov. 13 at 12 p.m.

STORYLINES
- UCI entered the season ranked 13^th in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) national poll and moved to a tie for No. 12 this week
- Freshman Tyler Padua was named the GCC Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 11 after scoring the golden goal in UCI's 17-16 upset victory over No. 6 Pacific. The game winner came in sudden death overtime. It marks the first weekly award for Padua and the first for an Anteater this season
- The Anteaters are 8-11 on the season and 1-3 in Golden Coast Conference play after a sudden death win over No. 6 Pacific last weekend
- Casey Lynton and Zlatan Nikocevic lead UCI and are fifth in the conference in goals scored with 48. Lynton is also second in the GCC in total points with 86, and assists (38) and leads the conference in steals (45)
- Lynton notched 100 career goals earlier this season and currently leads the 'Eaters with 119 total goals
- Harrison Land has started 18 games in goal and has 140 saves on the season, good for fifth in the GCC
- UCI has outscored opponents 125-104 in the third and fourth quarters
- After returning to the pool for the first time since 2019, the Anteaters opened the season 2-0 with wins against Chapman and Redlands
- UCI returns only 11 players from the 2019 squad as the 2021 team features 18 new Anteaters who will see action for the first time this season
- The Anteaters play eight regular season games at home as well as host the 2021 GCC Tournament in November for the first time since 2017
- UCI was ranked sixth in the GCC preseason poll
- Head coach Marc Hunt begins his 17^th season at the helm. He has amassed over 200 wins in 15 seasons and has a 204-199 (.506) overall record

WEEKEND REWIND
> UCI earned their first GCC win last weekend with a thrilling 17-16 sudden-death overtime win against No. 6 Pacific
> Freshman Tyler Padua scored the golden goal with 2:20 left in sudden death overtime. Padua finished with four goals on the day. Dylan Patist and Zlatan Nikocevic also finished the day with four goals each
> Harrison Land made 15 saves
> Padua also drew four exclusions

AGAINST THE BEACH
> LBSU is 19-5 on the season and a perfect 4-0 in GCC play. The Beach have earned a first round bye in the GCC Tournament next weekend
> The Beach are riding a four-game winning streak
> Rafael Real Vergara leads the GCC and LBSU with 63 goals on the season
> UCI is 93-31-1 all-time against LBSU. The Anteaters are looking for their first win since 2015 against the Beach

RETURNING 'EATERS
UC Irvine returns three all-conference players from the 2019 season including second team all-conference honoree senior Casey Lynton. Lynton was second on the team in goals (26), assists (21) and steals (21). He started every game for the 'Eaters in 2019 and has tallied 60 career goals.

Sophomore Chad Gornay and sophomore goalkeeper Harrison Land, who were both name on the GCC All-Freshman Team in 2019, also return for the 'Eaters. Gornay saw action in every game and scored nine goals, dished out 10 assists and drew eight exclusions.

Land started 16 games in goal, tallying 139 saves, good for fourth in the conference as a freshman. He finished his first year campaign with a .471 save percentage and a 9.75 goals against average.

Zlatan Nikocevic will also provide experience he finished the 2019 season with 18 goals while veterans Ivan Mercep and Carson Arnett had 13 and eight, respectively.

At center, Grant Chiponis and Kiyan Mohebbizadeh are expected to provide force and improve on their performances from the 2019 season.

Michael Sweica will also provide veteran leadership and depth to the talented Anteater team.

NEW FACES
The UCI roster will look almost entirely different with the addition of 18 new Anteaters. Joining Land in goal is newcomer Zayd Mahmoud, a USA National Youth Team player. Dylan Patist, Tyler Padua, Jacob Pyle and Nikola Ilic are also expected to make an immediate impact on the roster.

The new faces also include assistant coaches Bojan Hrlec and Randy Galza. Hrlec, a UCI alum, returns to his alma mater after coaching several club teams in the area. Hrlec was an All-American for the 'Eaters and graduated on the Dean's List in 2014. Galza joins the staff as a goalkeeper coach. He has several years of experience developing some of the top goalkeepers in the area.

UP NEXT
UCI hosts the 2021 Golden Coast Conference Tournament Nov. 19-21 at Anteater Aquatics Complex.