Morelli, Maier pick up MPSF awards


Coming off a blowout of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and an upset of No. 2 California last week, the No. 3 men’s water polo team had a couple of players bring home hardware for their efforts in extending the Trojans’ win streak to 10 games.

Junior driver Matteo Morelli was named the MPSF Player of the Week and freshman two-meter Matt Maier took home MPSF Newcomer of the Week honors. It is Morelli’s first selection as player of the week and Maier’s second honor as the top newcomer in the league for the week.

Morelli was the star in the 10-6 win over Cal at Uytengsu Aquatics Center last Saturday, recording four goals, two assists and two steals. Morelli scored the game’s first goal three minutes in to set the tone, and then netted an insurance goal in the fourth quarter to give the Trojans a three-goal lead.

The junior also had a hat trick against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps last Thursday, a 22-2 win for USC. Morelli recorded the first three goals of the game along with two assists and a steal. His 33 goals puts him second on team in scoring behind junior Blake Edwards, who has 36.

Maier scored twice last week, once in each game. He had a goal and an assist in the win over Cal, with his goal putting USC ahead 5-3. He has 15 goals on the season, scoring in 11 games.

The Trojans sport an 18-1 record and are perfect at home. They wrap up the regular season at home with games against San Jose State on Sunday and UCLA on Nov. 12.