LA JOLLA, Calif. — The No. 11 UC Santa Barbara Men's Water Polo team gets the 2024 season underway at UC San Diego's Triton Invitational this weekend, and there's no waiting around for a big matchup. The Gauchos will play their first game of the year against No. 1 UCLA, the 2023 National Championship Runners-Up. Matchups against Concordia Irvine, UC Merced and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps are also on this weekend's slate for Santa Barbara.
 
WHEN AND WHERE TO WATCH
The Gauchos and Bruins will get their marquee matchup underway at 9:15 a.m. on Saturday from Canyonview Aquatic Center in La Jolla. Santa Barbara's other matchup on Saturday is against Concordia Irvine, scheduled to start at 1:15 p.m. Sunday's two games are set for 12 p.m. against UC Merced and 4 p.m. against CMS. Tickets for both days, as well as two-day passes, are on sale online here. There will not be any live stream or live stats available for any of the Gauchos' matches this weekend.
 
LAST SEASON
Santa Barbara came ever so close to a Big West Championship in 2023, claiming the No. 2 seed in the conference and falling by just two goals in the final to UC Irvine. The Gauchos were led by the dynamic duo of Dash McFarland and Adam Gyenis. McFarland tallied 82 goals as part of an All-American campaign in what was his final season as a Gaucho. Gyenis wasn't far behind, tallying 64 goals himself and adding 24 assists to finish as the team's points leader. The Hungarian returns for 2024. Goalkeeper Levi Lentin was an all-conference second teamer in 2023 and earned a spot on the Big West Preseason Coaches' team ahead of this campaign. Gaucho Head Coach Wolf Wigo was named The Big West Coach of the Year in 2023.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
No. 1 UCLA is coming off a perfect regular season in 2023 but looking to avenge upset losses in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship Semifinal and the NCAA Championship Final. The Bruins return four of their five All-Americans and two Paris Olympians in the Dodd brothers, Chase and Ryder. They also have an 18-game winning streak over the Gauchos.
 
Concordia Irvine reached their conference championship in 2023, falling to Biola in the Western Water Polo Association Championship Game. Three Golden Eagles earned Division-II All-America honors, and two of those three return for 2024. However, Concordia went 0-10 against Division-I opponents last season, conceding 15 or more goals in every matchup. That includes a 20-12 defeat against the Gauchos at this very tournament last September.
 
UC Merced has only sponsored men's water polo for two seasons and have finished below .500 in both of them. The Bobcats are still looking for a first win over a Division-I opponent, and the Gauchos walloped them, 30-10, in Santa Barbara last season. However, this year marks the start of a new era for the former NAIA program UC Merced, who are beginning the process of joining NCAA Division II.
 
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps has become a Division-III water polo powerhouse in recent years, and the 2023 national champions start 2024 atop the Division III rankings. Attacker Christian Pang was named the Division III Player of the Year in 2023 and is back for 2024, as is Division III Coach of the Year Greg Lonzo. Including Pang, the Stags return three of their five All-Americans from last year. They also have a potentially crucial newcomer: a team dog named Mylo. More relevant to the in-pool action, the Stags' 2023 campaign included a pair of wins over Division-I teams, beating Air Force and Cal State Fullerton. The Stags also came within a goal of upsetting Pacific.
 
UP NEXT
The Gauchos will head north for another marquee matchup next week, paying a visit to No. 3 Stanford in Palo Alto on Sept. 12 at 4 p.m.