By Coming off of a tough game against No. 3 Cal Friday, the Long Beach State men’s water polo team will face two more heavyweight opponents this week. Wednesday will see the 49ers travel south down I-5 to play No. 11 UC San Diego. Following the matchup against the Tritons, Long Beach will return for this season’s home opener against No. 2 UCLA Friday.
LBSU (6-2) has something to prove in a stretch of tough games this week.
“I think it was a challenging game up at Cal, it’s a great environment to play in and great for experience,” head coach Gavin Arroyo said. “Obviously we didn’t get the result we wanted but we’re just trying to gather as much experience as we can in high pressure situations. Tomorrow will be one of those and then Friday obviously here with UCLA.”
Last year, Long Beach and UC San Diego battled in a game that went to a sudden death overtime period. The 49ers came out on top after a goal from redshirt junior attacker Austin Stewart. With tensions high and coaches chirping at referees all game long last year, this season’s matchup should once again prove to be nothing short of entertaining.
The Tritons boast a dangerous offensive attack, led by sophomore utility Connor Turnbow-Lindenstadt who has scored a whopping 30 goals in eight games. Long Beach is led by Stewart, with 18 goals on 18 shots this season.
“They’re great and they’re coming off some great wins; they beat Irvine, beat Pepperdine, played Santa Barbara tight,” Arroyo said. “They’re playing some high level water polo and we’re not taking it lightly by any means. We’re gonnagoing have to defend ourselves going down there.”
After Wednesday night’s game in La Jolla, Long Beach will return for its first home game of the season. UCLA is the highest ranked team LBSU is scheduled to face so far this season. The 49ers will play their home opener 7 p.m. Friday against the Bruins at the Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center.
