California Sweeps MPSF Men’s Water Polo Weekly Awards
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – California swept the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) men’s water polo weekly awards after the No. 3 Golden Bears’ wins over No. 1 UCLA and No. 4 USC over the weekend. Beso Akhvlediani was voted the Delfina MPSF Men’s Water Polo West Division Player of the Week and Ilias Angelopoulos was named the S&R Sport MPSF Men’s Water Polo West Division Newcomer of the Week. Andy Zhuri of Penn State Behrend was voted the Delfina MPSF Men’s Water Polo East Division Player of the Week and Laird Welch of Connecticut College was tabbed the S&R Sport MPSF Men’s Water Polo East Division Newcomer of the Week
MPSF WEST DELFINA PLAYER OF THE WEEK – BESO AKHVLEDIANI, CALIFORNIA
Sophomore attacker Beso Akhvlediani led No. 3 California to a 14-12 win over No. 1 UCLA on Saturday and an 18-11 victory over No. 4 USC on Sunday. The sophomore attacker recorded seven-point performances in each contest. He had three goals and four assists, along with a drawn exclusion and two field blocks against the Bruins, and recorded four goals and three assists to go along with a drawn exclusion against USC. Akhvlediani finished the week 7-for-11 on shot attempts in the two wins.
Also Nominated: Botond Balogh, Stanford
MPSF EAST DELFINA PLAYER OF THE WEEK – ANDY ZHURI, PENN STATE BEHREND
Andy Zhuri of Penn State Behrend totaled 28 saves in two games for the Lions this past week. He posted 14 saves, one steal and one assist against Gannon, before making 14 more stops in the win over Washington & Jefferson. Zhuri also added two assists and registered a .824 save percentage against Washington & Jefferson.
Also Nominated: Cormac Stevens, Connecticut College
MPSF WEST S&R SPORT NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK – ILLIAS ANGELOPOULOS, CALIFORNIA
Freshman Ilias Angelopoulos collected S&R Sport MPSF Newcomer of the Week honors for the second straight week following a pair of standout performances in the victories over No. 1 UCLA and No. 4 USC. He drew seven exclusions in the two contests. The center recorded two goals and four drawn exclusions against UCLA, and posted three goals and three drawn exclusions to go along with three field blocks and a steal against USC.
Also Nominated: Dimitris Chatzis, Stanford
MPSF EAST S&R SPORT NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK – LAIRD WELCH, CONNECTICUT COLLEGE
Freshman Laird Welch guided Connecticut College to an 18-11 win over Wheaton College. He recorded five points on three goals and two assists, while adding one drawn exclusion and one steal in the victory.
With two weeks remaining in the regular season, there is a lot of for grabs for seeding for the upcoming MPSF Men’s Water Polo Championship Nov. 20-22 in Los Angeles. The East Division teams will meet at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, during the second MPSF Weekend this Friday through Sunday. Cal and Stanford will each host No. 5 Fordham, while UCLA will host No. 7 UC San Diego and USC will travel to No. 11 UC Santa Barbara this weekend.