The UC Santa Barbara men’s water polo team will enter the 2015 season ranked No. 7 in the first College Water Polo Association (CWPA) poll of the year, it was announced Thursday.
The Gauchos, who ended the 2014 season in the same No. 7 spot, return a host of key players – some of whom redshirted last season – as well as adding a handful of outstanding newcomers.
Senior goalkeeper Chris Whitelegge returns for his third year as a starter. He will be joined by sophomore Shane Hauschild, an Honorable Mention All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation selection as a freshman when he scored a team-leading 32 goals to go along with 20 assists. Another sophomore Josh Jordan, is also a an important returnee.
Redshirts Nick Wiley, Anthony Buljan and Derek Shoemaker return to the fold. They be joined by a formidable trio of newcomers – Reed Cotterill, Boris Janovic and Ashton Jajonie.
UCLA, the defending NCAA champion, opens defense of its crown in the No. 1 spot, followed by USC, Cal, Stanford, Pacific and Long Beach State. Rounding out the top-10 are Pepperdine, UC Irvine and UC San Diego who are in spots 8-10.
UCSB will open the 2015 campaign on Saturday, Sept. 5 against Air Force and Long Beach State at UCSD’s Triton Invitational. The Gauchos will play their first home matches on Sunday, Sept. 27 when they host Navy (10:00 am) and Loyola Marymount (1:00 pm).
