No. 6 UC Irvine Opens Big West Play with 19-6 Win Over Cal State Fullerton

Friday, October 9

Irvine, Calif.

6 P.M.

UC Irvine

15-5

Cal State Fullerton

17-9

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Cal State Fullerton	2	2	1	1	6
UC Irvine	6	5	6	2	19

Photo by: Jacob Thompson/UC Irvine Athletics

No. 6 UC Irvine Opens Big West Play with 19-6 Win Over Cal State Fullerton

October 09, 2026 | Men's Water Polo

Box Score

By: Leah Fitzpatrick

IRVINE, Calif. – The No. 6 UC Irvine men's water polo team opened its Big West schedule in dominant fashion Friday night, earning a 19-6 victory over Cal State Fullerton at Anteater Aquatics Complex to secure its first conference win of the season.

UC Irvine jumped out to a 6-2 lead at the end of the first quarter before adding five goals in the second to take an 11-4 advantage into halftime. The Anteaters continued to build their lead in the third, outscoring Cal State Fullerton 6-1 to take a 17-5 advantage into the final frame. UCI added two more goals in the fourth while holding the Titans to one, securing the 19-6 victory.

BY THE NUMBERS: Junior Cole Francisco led the Anteaters with six points, scoring five goals and adding an assist.

Senior Wyley Dale tallied four goals, while senior Johann Thrall contributed two goals and three assists for five points.

Ethan Spoon and Ben Atkinson each scored twice, while Samuel Bowman, Ben Youngblood, Jayson Hubbard and Ryan Fresca added one goal apiece.

Freshman goalkeeper Nico Assalian recorded 12 saves.

Ethan MacLeod led the Titans with three goals.

HOW IT HAPPENED: UC Irvine struck first when Ethan Spoon drew a penalty and Francisco converted the five-meter attempt at the 7:43 mark. Cal State Fullerton responded 23 seconds later to tie the game, but the Anteaters quickly took control with a five-goal surge. Francisco scored his second goal of the quarter off a feed from Thrall at 5:59 before Dale found the back of the net at 5:19, assisted by Gage Verdegaal, to put UCI ahead 3-1. Dale struck again at 3:52 to extend the lead to three. Spoon converted on the power play after drawing an exclusion, with Maddox McEwen providing the assist, to make it 5-1 at 2:48. Bowman added a goal with 35 seconds remaining, and the Titans scored in the closing seconds to send UCI into the second quarter with a 6-2 advantage.

Dale completed his hat trick early in the second quarter, scoring off a pass from Verdegaal at 6:47 to extend the lead to 7-2. The Titans answered with a penalty-shot goal at 5:27, but Thrall responded at 4:49 with Francisco recording the assist. Atkinson then capitalized on the power play after Spoon drew an exclusion, converting a pass from Hubbard at 3:40 to make it 9-3. Spoon added another goal at 2:42 off an assist from Bowman before Cal State Fullerton scored at 1:47. Hubbard capped the half with a power-play goal at 1:11 after Dale drew an exclusion, with Brody Luke earning the assist, giving the Anteaters an 11-4 lead at halftime.

The Anteaters continued to pull away in the third, opening the frame with another five-goal run. Francisco converted on the power play at 7:25 after Spoon drew an exclusion, then scored again at 6:18 off a pass from Thrall. Thrall added a goal of his own at 5:34 to push the lead to 14-4. Dale scored at 4:35, assisted by Thrall, before Francisco completed his five-goal performance at 1:53 with help from Fresca. The Titans responded at 1:23, but Atkinson scored with five seconds remaining off a pass from Aiden Sexton to give UCI a 17-5 advantage heading into the final quarter.

Fresca opened the fourth-quarter scoring, converting a pass from Luke at 2:27 to extend the lead to 18-5. Cal State Fullerton added a power-play goal at 1:52, but Youngblood scored at 1:23 to seal the Anteaters' 19-6 victory.

UP NEXT: UC Irvine continues Big West play Saturday, Oct. 17, against conference newcomer California Baptist in Riverside. The matchup is scheduled for 6 p.m.