IRVINE, Calif. —  No UC Santa Barbara Men's Water Polo player has announced his arrival on the college scene as loudly as freshman Luigi Canepa since another Serbian, Milos Golic, nearly 20 years ago. Golic was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Newcomer of the Year in 2007 and scored a career-best 82 goals in 2008. Canepa is on a path to out-do him on both fronts. On Monday, USA Water Polo and The Olympic Club named the Belgrade native to their 20-man watch list for the Peter J. Cutino Award, given annually to the best collegiate water polo player in the country. Canepa is the only freshman in the group.
 
It is an acclaim he has earned. He scored eight goals in his very first collegiate game, leading the Gauchos to a comeback win over Saint Mary's. In his first clash with one of the so-called "big four," he put five past California as Santa Barbara gave the Golden Bears an opening-weekend scare. Since then, Canepa has tallied four more games with five or more goals and earned back-to-back Big West Player of the Week honors, becoming the first student-athlete to win the award twice consecutively since men's water polo returned to The Big West in 2023. Canepa leads the conference with 59 goals, scoring at a league-best rate of 3.1 per game, which is a pace that would see him finish with 86 goals if he maintains it until the end of the season, a total which would rank third in program history.
 
The Cutino Award is named for the late Hall of Fame coach Peter Cutino, and is given annually to the best player in college water polo, with one male and one female honoree. Since 2022, USA Water Polo, The Olympic Club and the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) have named a Cutino Award Watch List as a mid-season honor for the sport's top athletes. While a student-athlete does not need to be named to this watch list to be eligible for the award, every Cutino Award winner since the practice began in 2022 has been among this group of midseason honorees.
 
Gaucho fans can catch Canepa and Santa Barbara in action at home next on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 12 noon when they open Big West play against California Baptist. All of this fall's Gaucho home games are held at Santa Barbara High School and are free to attend.