DAVIS, Calif. — Now over halfway through the conference schedule, UC Davis men's water polo will take a break from the WCC for their last tournament of the season at the Julian Fraser Memorial on Oct. 24 & 25.

HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN/FOLLOW

Oct. 24 — vs. UC Merced | Watch Live | Live Stats | @ucdavismwp (X/Instagram)

Oct. 24 — vs. No. 18 Harvard | Live Stats | @ucdavismwp (X/Instagram)

Oct. 25 — vs. No. 6 Princeton | Live Stats | @ucdavismwp (X/Instagram)


GAME NOTES

• Last Time Out: The Aggies sit at 12-7 on the year and 4-0 in conference play following a home victory against Air Force last Sunday. Thomas Kiesling led the way with three goals for his sixth hat trick of the season while Oriol Viñas secured a career-high seven points with three goals and four assists.
• Conference Opening Statement: With back-to-back road victories to begin the WCC season, UC Davis has made a statement in their new conference. After taking down Santa Clara in the opener, the Aggies picked up a big win against preseason conference favorite San Jose State, etching themselves as a team to look out for this season.
• Non-Conference Recap: The 2026 non-conference schedule featured many highs for the Aggies, beginning the year 7-2 with many big wins against Division I competition. During the first weekend of the year against Iona, the team made history with 29 goals against the Gaels, the most goals scored in a single game in program history.
• Two in a row for Wulfhorst: 17 goals across the five games in the Aggie Roundup gave Wulfhorst the WCC Newcomer of the Week for the second straight week. His performance over the weekend was highlighted by a seven-goal performance against No. 18 Harvard, the second most in a single game in program history.
• Wulfhorst has the WCC's attention: With nine goals in his first four collegiate games, Aggie freshman Lucas Wulfhorst was named the WCC's Newcomer of the Week on Tuesday, Sept. 1 for the first week of the season. This weekly award is the first for the Aggies since 2024.
• A New Look Schaal: In preparation to host the NCAA Championships in 2027, Schaal Aquatics Center got some upgrades during the offseason. The highlight was the building of a brand new video board in the northwest corner of the pool, creating a more modernized experience for all fans to enjoy.
• Looking back on 2025: The 2025 season was one to remember for Aggie water polo, featuring the team's first Big West championship in their three year history in the conference and their tenth appearance in the NCAA Tournament. This success saw a number of postseason awards for the Aggies, including Coach of the Year honors for head coach Daniel Leyson, and all-conference honors for five different players.
• Elevating to the West Coast: In July 2025, UC Davis announced that their men's water polo and beach volleyball programs would make the transition to the West Coast Conference (WCC) for the 2026-27 season, in coordination with many Aggie programs moving to the Mountain West Conference. For men's water polo, this is the third conference realignment they've been a part of since 1994, going from the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) to the Big West Conference in 2023.
• Cross Country Aggies: UC Davis continues to expand its blueprint in the water polo world by traveling to play games on the East Coast for the first time since 2021, when the team played at the Navy Open in Maryland. It's also the third time the team has played in the Bruno Classic, competing in the tournament in 2018 and 2016.
• The Two Time All-American Returns: Leading the team with 65 goals and 79 points last season, redshirt junior Thomas Kiesling was rewarded for his efforts by being named a Third Team All-American by the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) in December. This was his second straight All-American award, being an Honorable Mention in 2024. Now in his third season with the program, he hopes to make it three straight honors in 2026.
• Elite-Scholar Athlete: On December 4, 2025, then junior Timothy Kerr received the highest academic honor an NCAA student-athlete can receive when he was given the National Collegiate Men's Water Polo Elite-Scholar Athlete award after achieving a 4.0 GPA in Electrical Engineering. With this honor, he was just one of eight student-athletes in NCAA fall 2025 sports to receive this prestigious award.
• 2026 Preseason Poll: With a strong 2025 under their belt, UC Davis was picked to finish second in their inaugural WCC campaign, receiving 42 points and two first place votes.
• 2025 Recap: The Aggies finished 2025 with a 15-13 record, rattling off three straight wins in the Big West Tournament to win the conference before falling to Stanford in the NCAA Tournament.

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS

• UC Merced is 1-14 on the year, recently playing in the Harvard Invitational last weekend. The Bobcats will begin their tournament against Iona today before matching up with Davis.
• Andrew Jones leads the offense with 19 goals while Matthew Lloyd serves as primary goalkeeper with 88 saves in 10 games played.
• Saturday will mark the second time this year both teams have squared off, with Davis winning 17-6 at home back on Sept. 6
• Harvard is 10-10 on the year, riding a seven game winning streak that included three straight victories at their home tournament last week.
• Offense has been strong for the Crimson all year, with senior Jack Burghardt in front with 54 goals and freshman Bay Area native Clay Carrington just behind him with 48 goals.
• 12 of Burghardt's goals came in the three games of the Harvard Invitational last week, including six in a top-20 matchup with Navy. His performance led Burghardt to being named the NWPC Player of the Week on Wednesday.
• This game will be a rematch for both teams, as Davis claimed a big victory 17-13 at home over Harvard on Sept. 6.
• Princeton sits at 17-3 on the year, winning three in a row before falling to Cal on Wednesday.
• Standout players from last weekend include senior goaltender Kristóf Kovács, rookie Tibi Cojocariu and junior Ádám Peocz.
• Kovács started and completed all three games last weekend, playing a total of 96 minutes. He allowed 33 goals on a total of 65 shots faced, making 32 saves, good for a .508 save percentage on the weekend. Additionally, he posted three steals. 
• Cojocariu started in all three games of the weekend, making 8 of 13 shots on goal posting a .615 shooting percentage. The rookie also tallied an assist, three exclusions drawn and a field block.
• UC Davis and Princeton are 4-4 all-time against one another, with the Aggies winning the last three in the series. The last matchup was at Schaal in September 2022, with Davis squeezing out a 9-8 victory.

SEASON NOTES

• This season is number 14 for six-time Coach of the Year winner Daniel Leyson.
• Leyson retains his coaching staff from last year with fifth year assistant Nick Alden and seventh year staff member Joey Frantz. Alden works primarily with operations and as the team's recruiting coordinator while Frantz serves as goalkeepers coach.
• Many high level players return from last season, including Kiesling, Kerr, 2025 Big West Tournament MVP Baxter Chelsom, and Oriol Viñas.
• New faces include Andonis Petroutsas from Cuesta College, Jacob Carrera, Jaden Joemtree, and Cassius Wolf.
• Coming off of a conference championship last season, the team looks to go back-to-back as they step into the WCC.

ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS: 

UC Davis Athletics represents one of the nation's premier public universities on the NCAA Division I stage, with more than 650 student-athletes competing across 25 sports, including 16 programs in the Mountain West Conference. Located in California's quintessential college town, UC Davis combines championship-level athletics with the academic excellence of the nation's #8 public research university and is home to the nation's No. 1 programs in agriculture, veterinary medicine and sustainability. With a growing national media presence, bold investments in facilities and the student-athlete experience, and a tradition of developing champions in competition, in the classroom and beyond, the Aggies are elevating UC Davis on a national stage.