IRVINE, Calif. - No. 13 UC Irvine men's water polo makes their way to Claremont for The Gary Troyer Invitational on Friday, Oct. 3. The Anteaters will play two games, starting with Wagner at 1:30 p.m. and concluding with tournament host No. 19 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at 6:30 p.m.

ANTEATER TIDBITS
• UCI improved to 11-5 on the season after a perfect 4-0 showing at The Joust (Sept. 26-27).
• Following their first 6-0 start since 2014, this 4-0 run marks their longest winning streak since the opening surge. 
•Ethan Spoon (24) recorded 10 goals and was one of three Anteaters to reach the 20-goal mark last weekend, along with Cole Francisco (22) and Wyley Dale (21), bringing the team total to five. 
• The 'Eaters won back-to-back Big West regular season titles in 2023 and 2024.
• The Anteaters are 9-1 in conference during that stretch, including a perfect 5-0 mark last year.
• They also claimed the Big West Championship title and made their first NCAA appearance in 30 years in 2023.
• UCI returns nearly 80% of its scoring from a 2024 squad that netted a single-season school record 400 goals.

IN THE RANKINGS
UCI came in at No. 13 in the latest Collegiate Water Polo Association rankings released on September 24. The Anteaters climb two spots in the rankings following their undefeated weekend. 

SCOUTING THE SEAHAWKS
Wagner (5-6) dropped two of their last three coming into The Gary Troyer Invitational. The Seahawks split two games at the Bucknell Invite before falling in a conference match, 9-21, at Fordham. The Seahawks netted a school-best 30 goals in a victory over Mercyhurst (30-12) before dropping to Bucknell, 12-14. Freshman Landon Castillo and Aksel Gerhardstein each scored four in the 30-goal effort, while senior captain Laszlo Strasser recorded a hat trick. 

SCOUTING THE STAGS
No. 19 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (5-4) dropped three of their last four at the MPSF Invitational. The Stags let in a season-high 25 goals against No. 2 USC (7-25) before falling to Princeton (7-16) and University of California, Santa Barbara (11-13). The Stags won their final game of the MPSF Invitational, 21-12, against University of Redlands, and will have two more matches before facing the 'Eaters. CMS will face Whittier College (Oct. 1, 7 p.m.) and Mount St. Mary's (Md.) for their first game of the Gary Troyer Invitational (Oct. 3, 6:30 p.m.). Thomas Walker leads the Stags with 29 goals and 12 assists, followed closely by Nick Kennedy with 28 goals and 28 assists. 

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine went a perfect 4-0 at The Joust in Riverside, Calif., Sept. 26-27. The 'Eaters defeated Concordia 17-10, with Johann Thrall leading the way with five goals, before conquering tournament host, California Baptist, 17-11, on Friday. UCI rode the momentum into Saturday as they scored a season-high 23 goals against Occidental. Ethan Spoon netted a career-high six goals to fuel the season-best performance and seal the 23-7 victory. UC Irvine finished strong, with 11 different Anteaters scoring in their 16-7 victory over Biola. 

ON THE ATTACK
UC Irvine has scored 13+ goals in 13 of its 16 outings. The Anteaters' two single-digit goal games this year came against No. 1 UCLA and No. 2 USC. The 'Eaters, who are averaging 14.9 goals per contest, have five players with 20+ goals on the season. Luka Krstic leads the squad with 31 tallies on the year. Johann Thrall is UCI's second-leading scorer with 28, followed by Ethan Spoon (24), Cole Francisco (22), and Wyley Dale (21). Thrall saw his 13 game goal streak come to an end against Biola, while Ethan Spoon recorded a career-high six goals against Occidental. 

MINDING THE NET
Senior goalkeeper Zayd Mahmoud started 11 of UCI's 16 games this year, logging over 360 minutes in the cage. He has compiled 92 saves and a 12.05 goals against average. Mahmoud stopped a season-high 10 shots vs. No. 9 Princeton on Sept. 20. Junior Blake Borders earned the start against Cal Lutheran (Sept. 6) and Biola (Sept. 27), finishing with seven and nine saves. Redshirt freshman Vincent Vega got the nod vs. UC Santa Barbara (Sept. 20) and Occidental (Sept. 27), logging nine saves against the Tigers. Redshirt Sophomore Nolan Cary got his first start against Concordia and stopped a season-best 11 shots. 

COLLEGIATE FIRSTS
Freshman Dylan Rosmann recorded his first multi-goal game in a 16-7 win over Biola (Sept. 27). Freshman Samuel Bowman scored his first collegiate goal with 1:35 left in the third quarter of a 21-7 victory over Concordia. Bowman struck again one minute later to cap a seven-goal period for the Anteaters. Rosmann also connected for his first career goal in a 13-12 win over UC Santa Barbara (Sept. 20). Sophomore Keegan McGann had the first multi-goal game of his collegiate career with two tallies against Cal State Fullerton, while sophomore Maddox McEwen netted a career-high four goals vs. Cal Lutheran. 

WEEKLY ACCOLADES
Ethan Spoon was named the Big West Player of the Week for the first time in his career, on Oct. 1. Spoon recorded 10 goals at the Lancer Joust and netted a career-high six against Occidental. His career-best performance led the 'Eaters to a season-high 23 goals against the Tigers. Luka Krstic was named the Big West Player of the Week for the first time this season, and fifth time in his career, on Sept. 17. Krstic had a pair of multi-goal games against the top-two ranked teams in the country, finishing with two at No. 1 UCLA and three vs. No. 2 USC. He was the only Anteater to find the back of the net multiple times against the Trojans. 

PRESEASON HONORS
Seniors Luka Krstic and Jack Stevens were named to the eight-member Preseason All-Big West Team as voted on by the conference's head coaches. Krstic is coming off a 2024 campaign in which he led the Anteaters with 80 points on 52 goals and 28 assists. He is a two-time All-American and first-team All-Big West selection. Stevens finished with 30 goals and 12 assists a year ago. He is a two-time All-Big West honoree. As a team, UCI was picked to finish third in the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll. The 'Eaters received 18 points to come in behind Long Beach State (29) and UC San Diego (20).

ALL-BIG WEST RETURNERS
The Anteaters return five All-Big West honorees from a 2024 squad that won their second-straight regular-season title. Luka Krstic was named to the first team, and Johann Thrall garnered second-team distinction. Cole Francisco and Jack Stevens were both honorable mention selections, while Francisco and Ethan Spoon made the All-Freshman Team.

STORIED HISTORY
UC Irvine men's water polo is in its 60th year as a program, and 59th season of competition (2020 season canceled). Since 1965, the Anteaters have put together 17 seasons with 20 or more wins, including a perfect 30-0 campaign in 1982 when they won the second of their three NCAA Championships (1970, 1982, 1988). The 'Eaters, who earned a spot in each of the first 10 NCAA tournaments, have made 22 postseason appearances.

HOME SWEET HOME
UCI is set to host the 2025 Big West Championships at Anteater Aquatics Complex, November 21-23. The conference tournament will make its way to Irvine after being held in La Jolla in 2023 and in Davis in 2024.