IRVINE, Calif. – A low-scoring affair at halftime turned in favor of the Cal men's water polo team in the third period as the No. 3-ranked Bears built a lead and maintained it to the finish to beat No. 19 UC Irvine 9-6 in the first of two road matches this weekend.

Offense proved hard to come by for both Cal (16-3) and UC Irvine (9-11) in the first half. Goals by Pedro Stellet and Farrel South left the Bears tied with the Anteaters 2-2 at the midway point.

That low-scoring tendency changed in the third period.  A goal by Johnny Hooper just over a minute into the period put the Bears in front and about two minutes later Vassilis Tzavaras pushed that advantage to two with a goal of his own.

UC Irvine countered with a goal to make it 4-3 but Cal closed the period strong, scoring four of the final five goals to take an 8-4 lead. Back to back goals by freshman left-hander Safak Simsek and goals by Hooper and Luca Cupido established control in the Bears' corner heading into the final period.

Cal turned its attention back to defense over the final eight minutes, and although Simsek's third goal of the day represented the Bears' lone goal of the period, UC Irvine didn't get much closer on the scoresheet. Part of that effort came courtesy of Lazar Andric in goal as the senior stopped 10 shots in the win.

With a win to start the weekend in hand, Cal now turns its attention to a Sunday showdown with No. 9-ranked Pepperdine. That match is set for a noon start and a link to live video can be found by visiting the Schedule page at CalBears.com.