Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 SAN JOSE, Calif. — The No. 14/15 Santa Clara University men's water polo team dropped two hard-fought games Saturday in the Big West/WCC Challenge against two top-20-ranked teams, as the Broncos fell to No. 16/17 UC Davis, 14-7, before being edged, 9-8, versus No. 12/12 UC Santa Barbara, at the SRAC Pool on the campus of San Jose State.
 
No. 16/17 UC Davis 14, No. 14/15 Santa Clara 7
 
The No. 16/17-ranked Aggies (8-8) exacted revenge over the Broncos Saturday, doubling them up with a 14-7 neutral-site, non-conference victory. No. 14/15 Santa Clara (6-4) topped the Aggies, 14-12 only eight days ago on Sept. 27 in the Aggies' own pool. That win was Santa Clara's first over UC Davis in 13 years (since 2011).
 
Andrew Hitchcock and Holden Neach led the scoring for the Aggies, each netting three goals. Aleix Aznar Beltran also played a key role, scoring two goals early in the game. Other contributors for the Aggies included Will Nomura, Colin Nicholls, Thomas Kiesling, Timothy Kerr, Adam Ting, and William Fosselman, each adding to the scoreline.
 
The Broncos managed to keep pace in the first half, with Riccardo De Simon scoring three goals. The teams were tied, 2-2, through the first, and UCD only held a slim, 7-5, lead at halftime. However, as the game progressed, UC Davis found their rhythm and pulled away. Santa Clara was shutout in the fourth period and only scored twice in the third, while UC Davis built its lead with five goals in the third and two more in the final period.
 
UC Davis goalie Frank Laptin recorded ten saves. Broncos goalkeepers, Owen Van Stralen and Wyatt Stenson, collectively made five saves.
 
No. 12/12 UC Santa Barbara 9, No. 14/15 Santa Clara 8
 
A hard-fought, back-and-forth match went the way of the No. 12/12 Gauchos Saturday, with UC Santa Barbara overcoming a fourth-period deficit to come from behind and beat the No. 14/15 Broncos, 9-8.
 
The Gauchos' (13-6) decisive strike came with just over two minutes to play. Marko Ilic scored a power-play goal off an assist from Danilo Dravovic only 15 seconds after a Broncos defender had been called for an exclusion. That broke an 8-8 tie and gave UCSB the final 9-8 advantage. UC Santa Barbara was able to hold off two more shots and force a turnover from Santa Clara in the Broncos' final three possessions.
 
Luke Bachler was the star of the match for UCSB, scoring four goals to propel the Gauchos to victory. He scored two goals in the first quarter that gave the Gauchos an early lead. Brock Zamanian also played a key role, netting two goals, while teammates Dom Brown, Marko Ilic, and Kai Ross added to the score sheet to ensure a balanced attack.
 
For Santa Clara, the offensive efforts were spearheaded by Zach Fales, De Simon, and Jack Fisher, each contributing two goals. Santa Clara took a brief lead in the second period with back-to-back goals from De Simon and Thomas Wisdom, making 5-4 at the time.
 
UCSB's Levi Lentin recorded seven saves while Santa Clara's Wyatt Stenson made eight saves. De Simon and Luke Baird both had two steals for Santa Clara. Landon Lassahn led the Gauchos with four takeaways.
 
COMING UP
The Broncos next travel to the Lancer Joust, hosted by California Baptist, where they'll play three total games on Friday and Saturday.