Men's Water Polo Preview; Aggies Kick Off Season at Rare Air Invitational - UC Davis Athletics (2024)

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The UC Davis men's water polo team is set to begin their 2023 campaign on Saturday, Sep. 2 against the University of Redlands and 2022 Division III National Champion runner-up Cal Lutheran University. The games are two of four at the Rare Air Invitational, a tournament hosted by the Air Force Academy.

The 5th ranked team in the country according to the Collegiate Water Polo Association, UC Davis has high hopes for the new season and will look to get off to a strong start in the mountains. After Saturday's matchups, the Aggies will finish the weekend off with showdowns againstClaremont-Mudd-Scripps and Air Force.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE
UC Davis vs. University of Redlands - 7:30am PT, Saturday 9/2
UC Davis vs.Cal Lutheran- 11:30am PT, Saturday 9/2
UC Davis vs. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps - 7:30am PT, Sunday 9/3
UC Davis vs. Air Force - 1:30 pm PT, Sunday 9/3

BACK IN THE BIG WEST
After 42 years in the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) the Aggies withdrew in order to join the Big West for the 2023 men's water polo season. It is the first time in 22 years that the Big West has had the necessary six member schools with men's water polo programs, after Cal State Fullerton formed a team this year. UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, UC Irvine and Long Beach State are also in the conference.

The new conference immediately becomes one of the nation's strongest, as each of the five already established programs were ranked in the top 15 nationally in 2022 and begin this season in the top 15 of the national preseason ranking.

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
Expectations are high this fall, following last year's 19-8 season which featured a WWPA Championship and National Championship quarterfinal berth. The Aggies are ranked as the 5th best team in the nation by the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) and have been deemed the top ranked team in their conference by a poll of Big West coaches.

The Aggie Roundup on the weekend of September 9th and 10th marks the first home action of the season for UC Davis. The Aggies have their hands full the following weekend with two home matches against Cal, winners of the last two National Championships, and #3 UCLA. A Saturday road trip to #16 Santa Clara keeps the weekend full.

The following two weekends will be spent in Southern California, first in Los Angeles for the prestigious MPSF Invitational, where the Aggies finished seventh last year, then in Orange County for the first-ever Big West-WCC Tournament.

Big West play kicks off on Oct. 6 at #9 Long Beach State. A non-conference matchup against #6 University of the Pacific provides a brief interruption and an opportunity for retribution for last year's quarterfinal defeat.

After almost a month on the road, the Aggies return for a two-game homestand against Big West competition before traveling for the final three games of the season.

The Big West Conference Tournament, hosted by UC San Diego, will begin on Nov. 17 and finish on Nov. 19.

OFFSEASON PREPARATION
The men's water polo team spent 17 days in Europe this summer, splitting time between Athens, Barcelona and Madrid. Exploring iconic sites such as the Parthenon, Las Ramblas and Puerta del Sol allowed the team to build chemistry out of the water, while training sessions against some of the best teams in each city helped the team connect in the pool.

Schaal Aquatics Center spent much of the last three months under the knife, receiving important facility improvements and renovations that forced the Aggie squad to use Woodland's Community Swim Center as an alternate training site. The home pool will be operational by early September, in time for the start of season competition.

TEAM PERSONNEL
Entering his 11th year at the head of the program, UC Davis head coach Dan Leyson will aim to maintain the Aggies' level of success as they transition into the Big West. In his 10 years in the WWPA, Leyson accumulated a 164-82 (.667) overall record, a 56-4 (.933) conference record, and five Coach of the Year awards.

Having lost only two seniors to graduation last spring, the 2023 Aggies are one of the most experienced groups Leyson has had. The team is led by three seniors and five redshirt seniors, all of whom have extensive playoff experience and are familiar with the team's system and values.

Goalie Aaron Wilson and utility man Aleix Aznar Beltran were named both CWPA and Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) All-Americans last season. Wilson saved 10.1 shots per game and was second in the nation in goals against average (8.52). Beltran posted 40 goals and 23 assists in 27 matches last season.

Beltran, Wilson and attacker Logan Anderson, were named to the nine-man 2023 Big West Men's Water Polo Preseason Coaches' Team. Anderson is coming off a season in which he logged 35 goals, 34 assists and 23 steals.

Will Nomura and Tyler Mrkaich will play a major role for the Aggies on the attacking end of the pool. Working as utility players, the redshirt juniors combined for 61 goals during the 2022 season.

Center-defender Aaron Volggenthaler will resume his role as a two-way force. The redshirt senior was the defensive anchor for the Aggies last season, while putting up 23 goals on the other end of the pool.Hole-set Andrew Hitchco*ck is primed for a larger role on offense as the big man in the middle. Hitchco*ck had 18 goals in his redshirt freshman season.

Max Stryker is one of the top passers on the team and in the Big West. Stryker dished out 28 passes that led to a goal last season.

Senior utility players Holden Neach and Ben Fleming bring experience and leadership on top of their strong play in the pool.