CBU Begins Big West Action 1-0 after Road Win at UCSB

Saturday, October 10

Santa Barbara, CA

12 PM

California Baptist University

20-4, 1-0Big West

University of California Santa Barbara

18-9, 0-1Big West

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
California Baptist	4	2	3	5	14
UC Santa Barbara	2	5	3	2	12

Team	1	2	3	4	OT	OT	SD	SD	SD	SD	SD	Final F
California Baptist Men 2026	1	2	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	9
UCLA (M)	7	5	5	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	21

Photo by: Ryley Collom

CBU Begins Big West Action 1-0 after Road Win at UCSB

10/10/2026 7:55:00 PM | Men's Water Polo

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Ryley Collom, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications & Digital Media

SANTA BARBARA/LOS ANGELES--- The California Baptist University men's water polo team opened conference action with a major victory as they defeated the UCSB Gauchos and then fell to #2 UCLA in the evening match.

The Lancers' overall record moved to 20-5 after Saturday's action, and they kick off Big West play at 1-0.

GAME 1 at #12 UCSB:

The first matchup of the day would be historic, as it marks the Lancers' first conference match as Big West Members. The opponent would be #12 UC Santa Barbara, who came into the match riding a six-game winning streak and are third in the conference rankings.

Andrea Nuzzo kicked off the scoring on a penalty shot as the Lancers' offense would score four goals in the opening period to lead by two early on. The Gauchos won the second period 5-2 to take a one-goal lead into halftime at 7-6.

Nuzzo and Wyatt Bugbee would kick off the third period with a goal apiece to give the Lancers the lead once again, but UCSB would score two of the next three goals to retake the advantage as the two teams went back and forth in their Big West opener. CBU would once again regain the lead in the early going of the fourth period as Michael Abshier and Rada Martinez would find the back of the cage to make it 11-10 in favor of the Lancers. UCSB would score on the next possession on a powerplay to even things up at 11 goals apiece.

The Lancers would provide the dagger over the ensuing two minutes of action as they would get goals from Nuzzo, Bugbee, and Martinez to take a commanding 14-11 victory that would eventually finalize into a 14-12 road win for the Lancers for their first conference win as a Big West member. The win was also the team's second-highest-ranked win of the season, behind their win over #6 UC Davis.

Nuzzo shone bright for Kevin Rosa's squad with four goals and an assist to lead the Lancer offense, while Bugbee and Martinez would combine for seven goals. The trio of Bugbee, Martinez, and Nuzzo combined for 80% of the team's offense in the victory with 11 of the 14 goals scored. In the cage, Tanner McCreary posted a season-best 15 saves in the full 32 minutes of action.

GAME 2 at #2 UCLA:

The final matchup of the day was a tilt against #2 UCLA in Westwood. The reigning national champion Bruins came in with just one loss on the season and had yet to lose at the Spieker Aquatics Center.

CBU came out hot as Paulo Hernandez would get a quick steal on the opening possession of the match and would score on a fastbreak opportunity to give the Lancers a 1-0 lead. The Bruins would shake that off quickly and proceeded to go on a 9-0 run that would bleed into the second period. The Lancers would end that run with a goal from Alessandro Tiberio. The Bruins would score three more before the half ended, as they would lead 12-3.

The Lancer offense had its best outing in the third period, scoring five goals in the frame and matching the Bruins' scoring. UCLA would outscore the Lancers 4-1 in the final period, finalizing the 21-9 victory. Hernandez would be the only Lancer with multiple goals, with two, while Wyatt Bugbee led the scoring with four total points (1 Goal 3 Assists). Tyler Carson recorded double-digit saves with ten.

NEXT: The Lancers will be back home for their first home conference match on Saturday, October 17, against UC Irvine.