The UCSB men’s water polo team defended Campus Pool in its home opener on Friday, defeating visiting UC Davis 7-5 in a low-scoring affair thanks to some stingy defense from the Gauchos.
“The first half we played excellent,” said UCSB head coach Wolf Wigo, whose No. 10-ranked squad improved to 3-2 on the young season. “We talked the whole pregame about defense. And our defense was as perfect as it could be in the first half.”
UCSB limited Davis to only one score in the first two periods, and, even though its offense wasn’t hitting on all cylinders, the Gauchos still had a comfortable 4-1 lead at halftime.
Sophomore Milos Golic led the Gauchos with three goals and senior Miles Price added two more.
But it was goalie Michael Robinson that kept the Aggies out of the net, recording nine saves, including a blocked penalty shot at the end of the third quarter that maintained the Gauchos’ three-goal lead heading into the final quarter.
“That was huge, mostly for momentum,” noted Wigo. “Instead of it being a closer game and them having all the momentum, now we still have a good lead and all the momentum.
“That was a big turning point.”
Davis outscored UCSB in the final frame 2-1, but never got within the final two-goal margin.
Stefan Partelow and Sean Castillo each scored for UCSB to round out the scoring.
The Gauchos fell to No. 10 in the national rankings from No. 6 this week after splitting four games in San Diego last weekend at the Triton Invitational. With the victory over No. 12 Davis, the Gauchos should climb up the ladder a bit before next Friday’s match at Pacific.
UCSB doesn’t play again at Campus Pool until an Oct. 7 matchup vs. Iona.
UC Santa Barbara 7, UC Davis 5
1 2 3 4 Final UCD 0 1 2 2 5 UCSB 2 2 2 1 7
UC Davis Goals: Adam Bennett 3, Brendan Sigourney 1, Danny Driscol 1.
UC Davis Goalie Saves: Kevin Peat 7.
UC Santa Barbara Goals: Milos Golic 3, Miles Price 2, Stefan Partelow 1, Sean Castillo 1.
UC Santa Barbara Goalie Saves: Michael Robinson 9.
