No. 6 UCI Cruises Past Air Force, 18-10, on Senior Day

Sunday, October 25

Irvine, Calif.

12 P.M.

UC Irvine

17-6

Air Force

16-13

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Air Force	2	4	0	4	10
UC Irvine	5	5	5	3	18

Photo by: Jacob Thompson

October 25, 2026 | Men's Water Polo

Box Score

By: Leah Fitzpatrick

IRVINE, Calif. – No. 6 UC Irvine men's water polo secured an 18-10 victory over Air Force on Sunday afternoon at Anteater Aquatics Complex on Senior Day.

The Anteaters set the tone early, outscoring the Falcons 5-2 in the opening quarter to establish a three-goal advantage. UCI continued to build on its lead in the second, edging Air Force 5-4 to take a 10-6 advantage into halftime. The 'Eaters delivered a dominant third quarter, shutting out the Falcons while adding five goals of their own to extend the lead to 15-6 heading into the final frame. Air Force outscored UCI 4-3 in the fourth, but the Anteaters' commanding lead proved insurmountable as they closed out the 18-10 victory.

BY THE NUMBERS: Senior Alex Lopez led the Anteaters with seven points, recording four goals and three assists. Gage Verdegaal contributed a six-point performance with three goals and three assists, while Johann Thrall added four points on three goals and an assist.

Cole Francisco chipped in three points with one goal and two assists, while Ethan Spoon added two goals. Wyley Dale, Keegan McGann, Ben Youngblood, and Jayson Hubbard each found the back of the net once.

All three UCI goalkeepers saw action, with Nico Assalian, Vincent Vega, and Nolan Cary combining for eight saves.

Tom Leggett led Air Force with three goals.

HOW IT HAPPENED: The Anteaters opened the game with a 3-0 scoring run to establish an early lead. Ethan Spoon drew an exclusion, and Gage Verdegaal opened the scoring by converting on the ensuing power play off a pass from Brody Luke at the 7:29 mark. Spoon added a goal of his own at 6:53, again assisted by Luke, before Alex Lopez found the back of the net off an assist from Verdegaal at 6:09 to put UCI ahead, 3-0. Air Force responded with back-to-back goals at 5:10 and 4:33 to cut the deficit to one, 3-2. The Anteaters answered with two goals to close out the quarter. Francisco drew an exclusion, setting up Johann Thrall to convert on the power play off an assist from Francisco at 4:01. Thrall then drew a penalty, and Lopez converted the five-meter attempt at 2:04 to give UCI a 5-2 advantage at the end of the first period.

UCI opened the second period with two consecutive goals to extend its lead. Lopez struck first at 7:38 off an assist from Nico Assalian, and Verdegaal followed at 6:39 with a goal assisted by Lopez to push the advantage to 7-2. Air Force converted a penalty shot at 6:25, but the Anteaters responded when Spoon drew an exclusion and scored on the ensuing power play off a pass from Francisco at 5:46. The Falcons added another goal at 5:34 before Wyley Dale drew a penalty and Brody Luke converted a five-meter attempt at 5:07 to make it 9-4. Air Force scored again at 2:11, but Dale answered just nine seconds later, finding the back of the net off an assist from Thrall at 2:02. The Falcons added the final goal of the half at 1:49, sending UCI into the break with a 10-6 lead.

The Anteaters dominated the third period, scoring five unanswered goals while shutting out the Falcons. Verdegaal opened the scoring at 5:22, and Jayson Hubbard followed at 4:51 to extend the lead to 12-6. Keegan McGann added a goal at 3:43 off an assist from Assalian before Lopez scored at 2:36 on a pass from Verdegaal to make it 14-6. Francisco capped the five-goal run with 53 seconds remaining, scoring off an assist from Lopez to give UCI a commanding 15-6 advantage heading into the final period.

Air Force opened the fourth quarter with a power-play goal at 7:36 to cut the deficit to 15-7. The Anteaters responded when Dale drew an exclusion and Ben Youngblood converted on the ensuing power play off an assist from Verdegaal at 6:59. Lopez then came up with a steal and sparked a breakaway, dishing the ball to Thrall for a goal at 6:37 to extend UCI's lead to 17-7. The Falcons answered with a goal at 6:10, but Thrall struck again at 4:41 to make it 18-8. Air Force scored the final two goals of the contest at 4:15 and 2:37, but the Anteaters' commanding lead held as UCI secured an 18-10 victory.

UP NEXT: The 'Eaters are back in action on Friday, Oct. 30, as they host No. 12 UC Santa Barbara for a Big West match up at 6 p.m. at Anteater Aquatics Complex.