By Gabriella Kelly- Spear Reporter | Junior utility Samu Biros attempting to throw the ball during game against USC on Sept. 19, 2026. (Photo by Briannah McGee – Spear Photographer)
No. 11 San Jose State men’s water polo (5-6, WCC 0-0) lost to No. 13 UC Irvine (9-5, 0-0 Big West) in double overtime, with the final score being 15-14.
The Spartans’ last game of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation invite was evenly matched. They went head-to-head with the Anteaters, trading back-and-forth scoring throughout.
“I thought the effort was really good,” SJSU head coach Gabor Sarusi said after the game.
Junior utility Samu Biros gave the Spartans a 12-11 lead with less than two minutes left in the game, but senior attacker Johann Thrall answered back, forcing overtime.
Both the Spartans and Anteaters scored in the first overtime. Junior utility Brody Luke scored the final goal of the game.
“I think we could have done a better job closing the game,” Sarusi said.
Despite the loss, it was a great game for sophomore utility Sam Keighley, who scored 5 goals. Senior goalkeeper Alexey Poletaev made 8 saves throughout the game.
Looking ahead, Sarusi said the team can benefit from games like this.
“These are the games we need, these high-low games,” Sarusi said.
The Spartans will play Stanford at 1 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25th in Palo Alto, California.
