After suffering heartbreaking defeats in the last three years at the NCAA tournament, No. 4 USC is ready to flip the script for the 2024 season.

Last year, the Trojans went into their 2023 campaign down 11 seniors to graduation. As a result, many underclassmen were thrust into starting roles. Now, with a plethora of experience, sixth-year Head Coach Marko Pintaric expects a solid mix of veteran leadership and young talent from this year’s group.

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“This is a veteran team; we have nine seniors backed up by [a] really talented group of juniors,” Pintaric said in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “There are not too many changes [compared to] how we played last season, but there are some new faces that we will try to integrate into this year’s team.”

Once again, fifth-year 2-meter Max Miller will be USC’s centerpiece on offense. Miller led the team in goals last year with 46 and collected a series of accolades, including American Collegiate Water Polo Coaches Association All-America First Team, Mountain Pacific Sports Federation MVP, all-MPSF First Team and NCAA All-Tournament First Team.

Fifth-year driver Carson Kranz will also look to impact the offense significantly, coming off a 32-goal season and being named to the ACWPC All-America Second Team, All-MPSF First Team, NCAA All-Tournament Second Team and MPSF All-Tournament Team.

In addition to returning veterans, the Trojans will be joined by two exciting pieces in sophomore utility Stefan Brankovic and sophomore driver Robert López Duart.

While Brankovic, a member of the Serbian national team, did not compete for USC in 2023, he is considered one of the top talents in collegiate water polo.

López Duart transferred to USC in the spring of last year after completing one of the greatest single seasons in Long Beach State’s water polo history. López Duart scored 87 goals (second most in program history) and 30 assists with the Beach. As a freshman, López Duart was named to the ACWPC All-America Second and All-Big West First teams.

But even with this offensive firepower, Pintaric’s focus remains on commanding the defensive side of the pool.

After getting his first start five games into the season last year, redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Bernardo Herzer will lead USC’s defense. Herzer allowed 9.6 goals per game in 19 games with an All-MPSF Second Team nod.

“In terms of identity and playstyle, we always communicate to our team [and] really try to emphasize defense,” Pintaric said. “What I like about this team [is] they’re [a] really good group of guys that play for each other. That type of team unity will start on defense to protect their goal to the best of their ability.

While the Trojans have undergone immense work in the offseason, it came with its fair share of challenges. Due to construction, the team spent most of the summer without its home pool. Subsequently, the most significant change hasn’t come from work done in the water: It’s been from changes made outside the pool.

“We’ve been having a lot of team meetings, talking about personalities, [making] sure our minds are right,” Miller said. “​​We were all over the place. We did the Grand Canyon, so we became really close. We had a crazy summer, it’s fun to be back, and we’re really excited.

USC’s first test will be this weekend when it heads south for the annual Triton Invitational. There, the Trojans will face two ranked opponents: No. 10 Long Beach State on Saturday and No. 8 UC Davis on Sunday.

“We are the type of a program to always look at [the] bright side,” Pintaric said. “We’re really looking forward for these guys to really start the season and play the season, the way they feel about each other. This was our communication from day one after our season ended; to train hard, to work hard and to play hard.”

The Trojans will kickstart their season Saturday at noon at Canyonview Aquatic Center.

Sloan Morra contributed to this report.