Thursday, October 9
Fullerton, Calif.
6 p.m.
Long Beach State University
at
Cal State Fullerton
Men’s Water Polo Opens Week On The Road With Big West Play At Cal State Fullerton On Thursday; Travels To Northern California For Pair Of Games
10/8/2025 10:06:00 AM | Men's Water Polo
The match against the Titans will be the first conference game of the season.
LONG BEACH, Calif. - Big West action will start this Thursday for Men's Water Polo as the team will face Cal State Fullerton at 6 p.m. on the road. Following the matchup against the Titans, the team will travel to Northern California to face ranked opponents No. 13 Santa Clara on Saturday and No. 4 Stanford on Sunday.
No. 10 Long Beach State (9-5, 0-0 Big West) comes off a tough loss at home after pushing No. 8 Pepperdine to sudden-death overtime, losing 17-16. The Beach rallied from a four-goal deficit with three minutes left in regulation to tie the game. Junior Caleb Francisco led the team on the night, tying a career and season high of six goals, including the goal that tied the game. Francisco has found his rhythm this season, scoring 18 goals in the last six games, and ranks second on the team with 25 so far. Sophomore Gabi Acosta leads the team this season with 44 goals after scoring a hat trick against the Waves. Goalkeeper Joe Jenness recorded a career high of 13 saves in the loss and leads the team in steals with 13 so far this season.
Cal State Fullerton (15-8, 0-0 Big West) saw its 11-game winning streak snapped after falling short to No. 15 California Baptist, 12-11, at the Gary Troyer Tournament last weekend. The Titans' previous loss came on September 13 when they dropped a close contest to No. 17 Harvard at home, 13-12. Leading the team and the Big West Conference in goals is junior Andrew Barnuevo with 50 so far this year. Senior Togan Ozbek leads the team and the league in assists with 31. On defense, junior Ethan Ivey has recorded 134 saves while adding six steals and two assists.
No. 13 Santa Clara (7-6, 1-0 WCC) split the past weekend, falling to No. 12 UC Santa Barbara, 14-10, and opening their WCC play with a big win over No. 18 Pacific at home, 13-11. Freshman Riccardo De Simmon and junior Reese Jenican both scored four goals in the win against the Tigers. De Simmon leads the team with 43 goals in his first season with the Broncos, while Henry Engs has a team-high 27 assists this year. With 130 saves so far, Harrison Labrosse leads the Broncos' defense.
No. 4 Stanford (8-4, 0-2 MPSF) also saw conference play start at home, dropping a 14-11 game against No. 1 UCLA and falling to No. 3 USC, 14-10. Against the Trojans, Alex Gheorghe scored a team-high five goals, while Ben Forer led the team with six goals against the current national champions, UCLA. Sophomore Botond Balogh leads the team with 33 goals this year, with Forer and Gianpiero Di Martire right behind with 31 each. Goalkeeper West Temkin has recorded 98 saves while adding 10 steals and seven assists this season. Both LBSU and Stanford faced each other at the Overnght MPSF Invite earlier this season, with the Cardinal taking the win over the Beach in overtime, 19-16.
First sprint against the Titans is scheduled for 6 p.m. on ESPN+ with live stats available through TheFOSH.net.
No. 10 Long Beach State (9-5, 0-0 Big West) comes off a tough loss at home after pushing No. 8 Pepperdine to sudden-death overtime, losing 17-16. The Beach rallied from a four-goal deficit with three minutes left in regulation to tie the game. Junior Caleb Francisco led the team on the night, tying a career and season high of six goals, including the goal that tied the game. Francisco has found his rhythm this season, scoring 18 goals in the last six games, and ranks second on the team with 25 so far. Sophomore Gabi Acosta leads the team this season with 44 goals after scoring a hat trick against the Waves. Goalkeeper Joe Jenness recorded a career high of 13 saves in the loss and leads the team in steals with 13 so far this season.
Cal State Fullerton (15-8, 0-0 Big West) saw its 11-game winning streak snapped after falling short to No. 15 California Baptist, 12-11, at the Gary Troyer Tournament last weekend. The Titans' previous loss came on September 13 when they dropped a close contest to No. 17 Harvard at home, 13-12. Leading the team and the Big West Conference in goals is junior Andrew Barnuevo with 50 so far this year. Senior Togan Ozbek leads the team and the league in assists with 31. On defense, junior Ethan Ivey has recorded 134 saves while adding six steals and two assists.
No. 13 Santa Clara (7-6, 1-0 WCC) split the past weekend, falling to No. 12 UC Santa Barbara, 14-10, and opening their WCC play with a big win over No. 18 Pacific at home, 13-11. Freshman Riccardo De Simmon and junior Reese Jenican both scored four goals in the win against the Tigers. De Simmon leads the team with 43 goals in his first season with the Broncos, while Henry Engs has a team-high 27 assists this year. With 130 saves so far, Harrison Labrosse leads the Broncos' defense.
No. 4 Stanford (8-4, 0-2 MPSF) also saw conference play start at home, dropping a 14-11 game against No. 1 UCLA and falling to No. 3 USC, 14-10. Against the Trojans, Alex Gheorghe scored a team-high five goals, while Ben Forer led the team with six goals against the current national champions, UCLA. Sophomore Botond Balogh leads the team with 33 goals this year, with Forer and Gianpiero Di Martire right behind with 31 each. Goalkeeper West Temkin has recorded 98 saves while adding 10 steals and seven assists this season. Both LBSU and Stanford faced each other at the Overnght MPSF Invite earlier this season, with the Cardinal taking the win over the Beach in overtime, 19-16.
First sprint against the Titans is scheduled for 6 p.m. on ESPN+ with live stats available through TheFOSH.net.
Players Mentioned
Center
/ Men's Water Polo
Attacker
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Goalie
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