Sports
Tritons Split Again to Finish 3-3 at Own Invitational
LA JOLLA, Calif. — For the third-straight day the 12th-ranked UC San Diego men’s water polo team split a pair of games Sunday to finish its own Triton Invitational with an even 3-3 record.
The Tritons had no problem getting the W in their opener, downing George Washington 19-12. Their second and final game of the day, and the tournament, was a hard-fought loss against seventh-ranked Pepperdine by a score of 10-9.
AGAINST GEORGE WASHINGTON
The Tritons showcased a powerful offensive performance, particularly in the second quarter, where they scored seven goals to take control of the game.
Lucas Romaguera led UC San Diego with four goals, providing critical scoring that helped his team build a significant lead. Bennett Axline was also instrumental, contributing three goals, while Felipe Ferreira, Brendon Fezzey, and Christian Hammonds each added multiple goals to solidify the victory.
George Washington’s Adonis Vlassis had a standout performance despite the loss, netting five goals for the Revolutionaries. Kai De Orbeta supported him with two goals, while other contributors included Yam Kabakov, Alec Posluszny, Griffin Yamaoka, David Sambolin, and Andrea Forno, who each found the back of the net.
The scoring was heavily weighted in favor of UC San Diego, especially in the early and middle periods, where it capitalized on its opportunities. George Washington struggled to keep pace, particularly in the second period, where they were outscored 7-2, ultimately leading to its defeat.
UCSD goalie Alex Hegeman recorded seven saves.
AGAINST PEPPERDINE
In a tightly contested match, seventh-ranked Pepperdine showcased a strong offense, led by Owen Tift and Cade Anderton, who each scored two goals, contributing significantly to their team’s edge.
The first period saw an intense back-and-forth, with Pepperdine scoring four goals to UCSD’s three. Tift netted two of his goals in this quarter, setting the tone for the Waves’ offensive strategy. As the game progressed, both teams continued to exchange leads, with UCSD’s Lucas Romaguera also shining, netting three goals throughout the match.
By halftime, Pepperdine held a slim 6-4 lead, thanks to goals from Sandor Gal and Cade Anderton. However, UC San Diego was quick to respond, narrowing the gap in the third quarter as they outscored Pepperdine 3-2, closing the score to 8-7 heading into the final period.
The fourth quarter was equally thrilling, with both teams trading goals. Romaguera scored his last goal of the match, but Pepperdine’s Barnuevo and Carcarey sealed the victory with their goals, ensuring a narrow win. Max Smirnov of Pepperdine stood out defensively, recording 10 saves, while UCSD’s Alex Hegeman managed three saves in goal.
MATT USTASZEWSKI INTERVIEW
TRITON TIDBITS
• Nine Tritons made their career debuts during the Triton Invitational – Razvan Alistar, Liam Amburgey, Kyson Becker, Jackson Boettner, Dusan Djordjevic, Cole Harman, Alex Hegeman, Winston Loh, and Davidka Skov.
• Lucas Romaguera and Mark Laurlund paced the Tritons offensively with 14 points each over the six games. Romaguera tallied 10 goals and four assists while Laurlund racked up five goals to go along with nine assists.
• Christian Hammonds had 13 points over the weekend, while Eamon Hennessey had 11 and Felipe Ferreira had 10.
• Playing almost every minute in goal, Alex Hegeman made 34 saves while adding six steals.
• During the event, the Tritons had wins over La Verne, Occidental, and George Washington and losses against No. 1 UCLA, No. 2 USC, and No. 7 Pepperdine.
• Other Big West teams competing in La Jolla included Long Beach State (5-1), UC Davis (3-1), and UC Santa Barbara (3-3).
UP NEXT
UC San Diego hits the road for the first time this season next week to compete at the Inland Empire Classic. The Tritons take on host Claremont-Mudd-Scripps as well as California Lutheran on Friday, Sept. 5.
Season and single game tickets are available for purchase online by visiting the link HERE or by calling (858) 534-1430. For more ticket information, e-mail the box office at triton-tix@ucsd.edu.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world’s preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
Sports
Fall 2025 SouthCoast High School Girls Volleyball Super Team
Jan. 9, 2026, 4:02 a.m. ET
The high school girls volleyball season on the SouthCoast was a strong one. Of the area’s nine teams, five — Dartmouth, Fairhaven, GNB Voc-Tech, Old Rochester and Wareham — qualified for the 2025 MIAA playoffs.
Old Rochester had the deepest run, reaching the Division 3 Elite 8 after winning the South Coast Conference Large Division crown.
Sports
No. 2 UH men’s volleyball makes easy work of No. 7 Loyola Chicago
Sports
T&F Set to Host Penn Select
PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men’s and women’s track & field teams return to the Ott Center on Jan. 10, hosting the Penn Select.
Field events are scheduled to begin at Noon with weight throw, high jump, pole vault, and long jump. Running events will start at 2:00 p.m. with the women’s mile.
PENN SELECT
Saturday, January 10
Jane and David Ott Center for Track and Field | Philadelphia, Pa.
Live Results, Schedule of Events, Watch Live – (ESPN+)
Tickets – $5 Youth (2-12), $10 Adult
Teams Competing
Delaware State, Howard, LaSalle, Lehigh, Morgan State, Penn, Rider, Rutgers, St. Joseph’s, Temple, Townson, and Villanova.
Quaker Notemeal
Jessica Oji made her collegiate debut in shot put at the Penn Opener (Dec. 5), breaking the Ivy League indoor record with a mark of 17.72m (58′ 1.75″).
Adannia Agbo broke the school record in the triple jump recording a distance of 13.05m (42′ 9.75″), rank second in the NCAA.
Jake Rose won six of seven events in the men’s heptathlon scoring 5647 points, setting a school record.
Freshman Joseph “Tiago” Socarras took over the track in the men’s 1000m crossing the finish line first with a school record time of 2:20.39.
Penn closed out the meet with a fifth school record, as the 4x400m relay team of Leo Francis, Nayyir Newash-Campbell, Tiago Socarras, and Ryan Matulonis ran 3:09.78 to claim victory.
NCAA Top 25
2. Jessica Oji, Shot Put – 17.72m
2. Adannia Agbo, Triple Jump – 13.05m
5. Jake Rose, Heptathlon – 5647 pts
16. Matthew Kathiravelu, Triple Jump – 15.06m
22. Keira Beaumont, 60m – 7.44
25. Ryan Matulonis, 60m H – 7.96
25. Raina Pietrzak, Pentathlon – 3560 pts
6. Men’s 4x400m – 3:09.78
17. Women’s 4x400m – 3:45.22
Leading the Ivy League
Keira Beaumont, 60m – 7.44
Tiago Socarras, 1000m – 2:20.39
Ryan Matulonis, 60m H – 7.96
Mark Hellwig, High Jump – 2:06m
Jake Rose, Long Jump – 7.12m
Paris Ivery, Long Jump – 5.96m
Adannia Agbo, Triple Jump – 13.05m
Jessica Oji, Shot Put – 17.72m
Jake Rose, Heptathlon – 5647 pts
Men’s 4x400m – 3:09.78
Women’s 4x400m – 3:45.22
Ivy League Athlete of the Week
Jessica Oji – Dec. 9
Jake Rose – Dec. 9
Upcoming Meets
Jan. 17 – Quaker Invitational (Ott Center)
Jan. 22-24 – Penn 10 Elite (Ott Center)
Jan. 30 – Penn Invitational (Ott Center)
Jan. 30 – 31 – Stan Scott Invitational (Lubbock, Texas)
About the Ott Center
The 73,000-square foot facility on River Fields Drive is connected to the Hollenback Center, adjacent to the Schuylkill River and south of Penn Park. Designed to be filled with natural light, the new building features large, clear story windows which face the Schuylkill River and align with the multi-story windows on the flanks of Hollenback, which was originally the campus powerplant.
The facility is designed to honor Penn’s long tradition of excellence in track and field and will enhance and provide support to the Penn Relays – the oldest and largest track and field event in the country.
The facility contains a banked 200 meter running track designed around specific geometric relationships between the straight and curved track sections to produce optimal conditions for running events, two long jump/triple jump runways, two pole vault runways, an eight-lane infield for sprints, hurdles and high jump, and a throwing area for the shot put and weight throw. With spectator seating of more than 1,000, the Ott Center will be able to host a series of exciting youth, high school and college events for years to come.
Sports
Michigan State Indoor Track & Field Returns to Action at Wolverine Invitational
Date: Saturday, Jan. 10
Location: U-M Indoor Track & Field Building | Ann Arbor, Mich.
Live Results
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State track & field returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 10 at the Wolverine Invitational.
This is the Spartans’ first meet since the holiday break. Michigan State will have several sprinters along with a group of field athletes in action.
The field events begin at 10:30 a.m., while the running events start at 11 a.m. Tess Roman will start the running action for MSU in the prelims of the 60m hurdles. Roman will also compete in the women’s shot put. Logan Allen and Dylan Terryberry will follow in the prelims of the 60m hurdles at 11:15 a.m. Last time that Allen competed at the GVSU Holiday Open, he set the Michigan State record with a time of 7.77 in the 60m hurdles.Terryberry will also be in action in the high jump.
In the 300m, Elizabeth Anderson and Alexys Wilson will compete for the Spartans in the final running event for the MSU women. In the field events, the Leila Barmore and Gabrielle Jeffries will be in action in the long jump.
On the men’s side, Michigan State will have three athletes in the 60m dash in Cameron Cheetam, Drew Novak and Carter Bissell. The Spartans will have two more men in field events. Adam Blue will contest the pole vault and Andrew Harding in the long jump.
Sports
Five Volleyball Student-Athletes Earn Southland All-Academic Honors
NEW ORLEANS – Five New Orleans Privateers volleyball players earned a spot on the Southland Conference All-Academic Team that was announced by the conference office on Friday afternoon.
Courtney Roundtree, Defne Eciroglu, Vanae Sapp, Alessandra Meoni and Lani Alleman all earned spots on the team.
Roundtree has a 3.33 GPA as a Sociology major with a minor in Psychology. The senior middle blocker played every set this season and accrued 236 kills. For her career, Roundtree finished with 653 kills and 199 total blocks. She had a stretch of eight consecutive matches with 10 or more kills this season.
Eciroglu currently has a 3.87 cumulative GPA after the fall semester as a Chemistry major. The junior setter entered the top 10 in program history in career assists and now has 1,601 assists in her three years on the Lakefront. She had 713 assists and 198 digs for the 2025 campaign.
Sapp finished holds a 4.00 GPA while in a Master’s program for Education. Sapp transferred to the Privateers for her final year in 2025 and finished with 158 kills along with 228 digs. She had a pair of double-doubles against Lamar this season. Sapp also had 10 matches with 10 or more digs on the year.
Meoni is also a graduate transfer with a 4.00 GPA. She is in a Master’s program for Mathematics. Meoni finished the year with a team-high 249 kills and added 128 digs and 49 total blocks. She had five double-doubles on the season and had a 20-kill match against Nicholls and a 25-dig performance against East Texas A&M.
Alleman currently holds a 3.60 GPA as a Psychology major. The junior libero had 151 digs this season. She also finished her career in the top 15 in career digs per set in program history with 2.34. In her three seasons with the Privateers, Alleman finished with 658 digs in 259 career sets played.
These five women are the first Southland volleyball all-academic selections since Kaitlyn Grice in 2018.
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SOCIAL MEDIA
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Sports
Cross Country Lands Six on Academic All-MAC Team
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The Mid-American Conference announced the 2025 Cross Country Academic All-MAC Team on Thursday morning, celebrating the achievements of 117 student-athletes who have excelled both in competition and in the classroom. The Broncos were headlined by six honorees on this year’s list.
The Academic All-MAC distinction honors student-athletes who demonstrate outstanding dedication to both their academic and athletic pursuits. To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.20 and participate in at least 50% of their team’s competitions during the season.
Ava Kurczewski (3.93, Exercise Science), Lara Machado Pereira (3.76, Biomedical Sciences), Larissa McGrath (3.97, Biomedical Sciences), Lily Overton (3.70, Exercise Science), Lauren Sancrant (3.68, Strategic Communications: Public Relations) and Madison Zarembski (3.98, Elementary Education) were the representatives this season.
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