Teams: UC Davis vs. UC San Diego
Records: Aggies, 11-5 (11-0); Tritons, 9-7
Where: Schaal Aquatic Center
When: Friday at 3:30 p.m.
Who to watch: If the trend of double-teaming and stifling center Aaron Salit continues, the Aggies will have to find other players to get something going.
One of these players who has shown play-making ability has been senior Carlos Martinez.
Though the native of Walnut Creek, Calif., is no longer the primary source of scoring, he still remains a crucial role in the offense. In addition to his four assists, Martinez has put up six goals – three of them coming against the Tritons.
Did you know? Friday’s game against UC San Diego will be the last time this season the Aggies will face a conference opponent at home.
Preview: With the water polo season nearing its climax, several things still loom ahead for the Aggies.
There is a real possibility that they can end up undefeated in conference play.
Though they started the season by taking a tough loss to California, UC Davis has turned things around and imposed their will upon Western Water Polo Association opponents. The Aggies are 11-0 against conference rivals, with their five losses coming against top-10 opponents.
In order to finish the conference portion without a loss, the Aggies will have to take out the Tritons in their last conference home game.
Both teams will attempt to rebound from tough losses. UC Davis will look to get scoring early and often, as they were held to only three goals against Pacific on Oct. 8.
UC San Diego hopes to regain the winning touch after No. 8 Long Beach State broke their three-game winning streak.
Recent opponents have been focusing on Salit, requiring the perimeter players to shoot well – something the men’s squad did not do well last weekend.
“We gave [Pacific’s] goalie easy shots to block,” said men’s water polo coach Steve Doten. “Usually, we do a little better job shooting the ball. If we can’t get [Salit] the ball, we’re going to have to move [the ball] around.”
– Matt Wang
