LA JOLLA, Calif. — The No.12 UC Santa Barbara Men's Water Polo team is back on the road Friday, heading south for a Big West showdown against No.10 UC San Diego at Canyonview Aquatic Center. The Gauchos will look to bounce back from a loss in their conference opener and secure the first Big West victory of the season against the Tritons. When these two UCs last got together, Santa Barbara took the win over a UC San Diego squad that was ranked sixth in the nation at the time, one of three upsets of sixth-ranked teams for the 2025 Gauchos.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The 2026 Gauchos opened Big West play against California Baptist last Saturday, falling to the Lancers despite a strong offensive effort. The Gauchos did not go down easy despite being without Serbian star Luigi Canepa, with senior Finn Genc leading the attack with three goals and an assist. After falling behind by two goals in the first quarter. The Gauchos responded with a five-goal surge in the second. Genc, Hayden Tully, Dash D'Ambrosia, and Camren Simoncelli contributed to the comeback that had Santa Barbara ahead by one at the half. However, the Lancers kept within that one-goal margin in the third quarter before pulling away in the fourth with a 5-1 run to secure the victory. 
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
No.10 UC San Diego enters the weekend with an overall 12-5 record, coming off of a statement win last Friday. The Tritons opened conference play with a victory over preseason favorites No. 7 Long Beach State, securing the win by one goal. Landon Akerstrom came into the fourth quarter with his fourth goal on the night, standing as the game-winning goal. That momentum was not enough to power them past No. 3 USC, as the Tritons fell, 15-9, but their defense did have some solid moments. Freshman goalkeeper Jack Elder entered in the third quarter and made four saves over his 14 minutes of game time.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
UC Santa Barbara will face UC San Diego at the Canyonview Aquatic Center on Friday at 6 p.m. Fans can catch all the action live on ESPN+ or follow along with live stats and play-by-play updates for the game through ucsbgauchos.com.