A close battle for the Aggies with a final score of 12-14 against UCLA
By DANIELLE WIRNOWSKI— sports@theaggie.org
The Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Overnight Invitational, an early-season men’s water polo tournament for the collegiate level, was hosted by both UC Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Southern California this year.
This annual tournament serves as a chance for competitive early-season play to test the teams, as well as the coaching staff. It also puts the top-tier teams on display for the media and the fans before the season even starts.
The UC Davis Aggies played three total games between Friday, Sept. 19 to Sunday, Sept. 21. The Aggies went up against Pepperdine University, UCLA, Long Beach State University (LBSU) and UC San Diego (UCSD), finishing in sixth place.
The Aggies started the invitational against Pepperdine University on Sept. 19 at 1:30 p.m., coming prepared to fight for a victory.
The Aggies started out in the lead. They maintained this lead until the fourth quarter, in which Pepperdine University was able to catch up to the Aggies, tying the score 12-12. UC Davis did this with only 16 seconds left in the game, pushing it into overtime.
Baxter Chelsom, a third-year psychology major, made a total of 12 saves across the 38 minutes of gameplay, including both overtime periods.
When the first overtime saw neither team score, the teams were forced to enter a second overtime period. The Aggies finally scored two more goals in the second period, giving them the victory with a score of 14-12.
Oleg Shatskikh, a second-year life sciences major, secured five goals for the Aggies — two of which were taken in the second overtime, securing that victory over Pepperdine.
After the previous win, the Aggies were ready for their match against UCLA the next day, on Sept. 20 at 8 a.m.
The Aggies put up a strong fight against UCLA, as they took a total of 32 shots across the four quarters, while UCLA’s team only took 30 shots. In addition, the Aggies were able to make eight total steals across the game, just barely under UCLA’s nine steals.
Thomas Kiesling, a third-year economics major, was credited with three total goals against UCLA, with Andrew Hitchcock, a fifth-year communication major, trailing just behind with two goals.
As vital as these two players were in scoring against UCLA, so were the goalkeepers. Brady Simon, a third-year communication major, led the team on saves with five saves made in just 16 minutes of the game.
Despite the tough loss against UCLA, the Aggies were not done. They then went up against LBSU at 2 p.m., the same day.
The Aggies brought determination and fight to the game against LBSU. The entire game was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams for who would emerge victorious. Across all four quarters, the Aggies took 16 shots and made a total of six steals compared to LBSU’s 27 shots and nine steals.
The Aggies took the lead right from the start, as they scored within the first two minutes of gameplay. The Aggies were able to maintain this lead throughout the entire match, as they entered halftime with a 7-6 lead, and were able to double their score in the second half.
Hitchcock was credited with two goals, scoring both back-to-back in the fourth quarter. Chelsom served as the goalkeeper for the entire game and accomplished 10 saves while in the water.
The Aggies went up against their next opponent, UCSD, the following day at 11:30 a.m., taking the same fighting energy they had against LBSU for their match.
The Aggies went on the attack from the first minute of gameplay, starting off with a 4-2 lead at the end of the first quarter, and a 9-5 lead going into the second half. Even by the end of the third quarter — despite the impressive amount of goals UCSD scored in those eight minutes — the Aggies still had the lead of 12-11.
Shatskikh secured three total goals with only four shots taken, as the team took 28 shots.
Unfortunately, UCSD managed to stop the Aggies from scoring for the rest of the game, taking three additional goals to officially give them the win with a score of 12-14.
Next up, the Aggies are set to play Santa Clara State University at Santa Clara’s pool on Sept. 27 at 1 p.m.
Written by: Danielle Wirnowski — sports@theaggie.org
