Seven members of the No. 9 Pepperdine men’s water polo team have received postseason honors from the West Coast Conference (WCC), the most of any program in the conference this season.
Sophomores Erik Ionescu and Max Smirnov were named to the All-WCC Second Team, while freshman Csanád Bella earned a spot on the WCC All-Freshman Team. Junior Jon Carcarey, senior Sandor Gal, and graduate students Dane Howell and Matty Walsh received All-WCC Honorable Mention recognition.
“We are very proud of all our athletes that were recognized for the 2025 WCC All Conference and All Freshman Team Awards,” said head coach Merrill Moses. “We have the most athletes recognized from a team which shows the depth and talent of our team. The team has been working extremely hard this season and we are very excited to compete in the WCC championships this weekend.”
Ionescu led Pepperdine with 88 points through 53 goals and 35 assists during the season. He scored multiple goals in 16 out of his 24 appearances, registered nine games with at least five points, contributed to key wins over ranked opponents, added 14 steals, six field blocks, and was eighth in points among all WCC players during regular season play.
Smirnov started in goal for most of Pepperdine’s matches, recording 216 saves across 21 appearances with a .466 save percentage. He ranked second in both saves and save percentage within the conference.
Bella made an impact as a freshman utility player with 23 goals, two assists, 15 steals, and 16 field blocks. His defensive presence put him third in field blocks among all conference players.
Carcarey recorded notable contributions on both ends of the pool with 31 goals, 22 assists, 25 steals, and ten field blocks over his junior campaign. Gal finished second on his team with 86 points (40 goals and 46 assists), led Pepperdine in field blocks (19), was second in steals (27), ranked ninth in total WCC points, fifth in assists, and first in field blocks across all teams.
Howell posted a strong offensive output with 53 goals and led his squad—and ranked sixth conference-wide—with 29 steals. Walsh topped Pepperdine’s scoring chart with 55 goals on efficient shooting; he also had six assists, twenty steals, eight field blocks—his goal tally ranking eighth among all WCC players this year.
Other major individual awards announced by the conference included Coach of the Year James Graham (Pacific), Player of the Year Brendon Gyapjas (San José State), Newcomer of the Year Alika Naone (LMU), and Freshman of the Year Apostolos Georgaras (Pacific).
Pepperdine water polo has experienced long-term success under coaches Terry Schroeder—who recently handed leadership to Merrill Moses—and previously won a national championship in 1997. The program has reached thirteen NCAA tournaments and produced sixty All-American honorees over its history while achieving winning records in thirty-six out of fifty seasons.
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