Gauchos Take Another Step Towards Regular Season Crown by Toppling Anteaters

Jeff Liang Box Score 11 Winner UC Santa Barbara UCSB (21-9, 3-1) 10 UC Irvine UCI (17-7, 2-2) Winner UC Santa Barbara UCSB (21-9, 3-1) 11 Final Oct. 30, 2026 10 UC Irvine UCI (17-7, 2-2) Score By Periods Team 1 2 3 4 F UC Santa Barbara UCSB 4 3 2 2 11 UC Irvine UCI 3 0 4 3 10 Game Recap: Men's Water Polo | 10/30/2026 8:00:00 PM Gauchos Take Another Step Towards Regular Season Crown by Toppling Anteaters IRVINE, Calif. — The No. 11 UC Santa Barbara Men's Water Polo team has gotten hot at the right time, completing its third consecutive top-10 upset by defeating No. 8 UC Irvine in Irvine on Friday night, 11-10. With the win, the Gauchos remain atop The Big West standings, holding the head-to-head tiebreaker against UC San Diego and half a game ahead of California Baptist. That set of circumstances means that if the Lancers lose either of their next two games — against Long Beach State on Halloween and UC San Diego on Nov. 6 — Santa Barbara would clinch The Big West Regular Season Championship with a win over Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 8. HOW IT HAPPENED The Gauchos kept the Anteaters at arm's length through a back-and-forth first quarter, then pushed off with a 3-0 second. After the...