CBU Battles USC, UC Irvine In Season Opener

Saturday, September 2

La Jolla, CA

8 AM

California Baptist University

0-1

#3 USC

1-0

California Baptist

Southern California

Photo by: Elijah Hickman

CBU Battles USC, UC Irvine In Season Opener

9/2/2023 2:11:00 PM | Men's Water Polo

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 CBU vs USC Paper Stats CBU vs UC Irvine Paper Stats

By: Daniel Cook, Director of Athletics Communications & Digital Media

LA JOLLA, CALIF. – California Baptist University men's water polo took on #3 USC and #11 UC Irvine in Saturday's opening action of the 2023 season. The Trojans and Anteaters each claimed their first victory of the season over the Lancers by scores of 17-12 and 18-10, respectively.

Sophomore Alex Righetti led CBU in scoring on the day, netting four goals and adding two drawn exclusions to his stat line. Caleb Teraoka was held scoreless in the opening doubleheader but made things happen with a team-high five assists on Saturday.

Cameron Cullen tucked away a trio of goals in two games, with Matt Olsen, Bodhi Bowden, Marcus Lodewyk, and Thomas de Wit all scoring in both games today as well. Senior goalkeeper Trevor Benge stopped 21 shots on the day, 11 in the opener against USC and another ten in the day one finale against the Anteaters.

The Lancers made a strong push against USC in the second half, outscoring the Trojans 10-6, but could not fully close the gap that USC had built in the first half. The Lancers were stronger again after the break against UCI, but the Anteaters were consistent, scoring nine goals in each half, never allowing a Lancer rally to gain traction.

CBU will take on #4 Stanford and #7 UC Santa Barbara in tomorrow's action to close out the Triton Invitational. The Lancers face the Cardinals at 8:00 a.m. and play their final game of the tournament against the Gauchos at 2:30 p.m.