Mohammad Najimi (@mnajimisjsu) – Spear Reporter | Spartan’s Giancarlo Marquez rises and shoots the ball past the Bears’ goalkeeper scoring a goal in the loss on Sept. 14. (Photo by Mohammad Najimi – The Spear)
In a contest featuring tight scores and missed opportunities, the No. 3 ranked University of California, Berkeley Golden Bears bested the No. 6 ranked San Jose State Spartans 12-10 Sunday afternoon in men’s water polo.
UC Berkeley leaned on the vision of freshman attacker Beso Akhvlediani, who spearheaded the offense with three goals and a game-high four assists.
With him was freshman attacker Tomas Perrone, who added two goals and two assists and kept the Golden Bears a step ahead whenever SJSU threatened to get in front of them.
Despite the loss, the Spartans had plenty of individual highlights.
Sophomore driver Samu Biros led all scorers with four goals, continuing his role as the team’s go-to option on the perimeter.
Freshman utility Sam Keightley delivered a balanced performance with three goals and an assist.
Power play efficiency was the difference between the teams. Cal went 2 of nine man-up opportunities, while SJSU could manage only one of 11.
While pulling more exclusions, the Spartans could not capitalize on those goal opportunities, leaving momentum at the doorstep.
Berkeley also was boosted defensively with six field blocks to the Spartans’ four.
Goalkeeping play was nearly even, with the Bears having 11 and the Spartans having nine saves, Statistically, as even in the score, the game was balanced. Both sides both had eight turnovers and tied steals at nine.
The Spartans dominated the first sprints, taking all four to give themselves early possessions, but the defense of the Golden Bears took those quick starts away from them consistently.
There was some success with drawing penalty calls by SJSU, scoring on three of four penalty shots. Berkeley managed only two such opportunities but scored once.
Those open chances kept the Spartans in striking range, but they were never able to take a lead into the final minutes.
Back 12-9 in the fourth quarter, SJSU had one final push. Junior utility Giancarlo Marquez launched in a goal, and the Spartans forced a late turnover to keep hope alive.
But Berkeley shut down on defense, running out the clock on its last possession to claim the two-goal win.
For the Golden Bears, the victory showcased depth, with multiple players contributing on both ends.
For SJSU, the defeat was a reminder of how critical execution is, especially with the man advantage.
UC Berkeley finished the day shooting 12-for-28, slightly outpacing SJSU’s 10-for-31. That difference, combined with the struggles on the power play, defined the outcome.
SJSU will regroup and return home to play against the People’s Republic of China at 6 p.m. on Thursday in an exhibition match.
