STOCKTON, Calif. – Three Pacific men's water polo players have made the first-ever watchlist for the coveted Peter J. Cutino Award.
USA Water Polo and The Olympic Club have collaborated with the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) in introducing the Cutino Award Watch List.
Senior Bogdan Djerkovic, senior co-captain Jeremie Cote and sophomore co-captain Reuel D'Souza have all been named to the watch list.
"It's really exciting to have all three of these guys on the watchlist," said Head Coach James Graham. "They're each great and dynamic players and bring something different to the team. In addition, all three of them are tremendous leaders and are keys to the mentality and culture of Pacific men's water polo. We look forward to the remainder of the season and getting these guys the recognition they deserve at the end of the year."
The Peter J. Cutino Award, named in honor of the late Hall of Fame coach, recognizes the best player in men's and women's college water polo.
Djerkovic, a 6'7" senior from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, plays two-meter center for the Tigers. Djerkovic leads the team with 43 goals and has 15 drawn exclusions credited for the team. He also has four steals, two assists and two field blocks.
In his junior year, the mechanical engineering major earned an honorable mention on the 2021 Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches Division I All-America Team and was named to the GCC All-Conference First Team. He played in all 22 games for the Tigers, recording 50 goals, two assists, 10 steals and seven field blocks.
Cote, a 6'2" senior from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, is a utility player for the Tigers. He's fourth on the team with 37 goals and has 16 assists. He has five drawn exclusions, eight steals and two field blocks.
In his junior year, Cote earned Third Team recognition on the 2021 Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches Division I All-America Team and was named to the GCC All-Conference First Team. The business administration-finance major earned GCC All-Academic honors. Cote played in all 22 games, recording 51 goals, 16 assists, 11 steals and five field blocks. He ranked sixth in the conference in goals scored and third in goals per game with 2.4.
D'Souza, a 6'3" sophomore from Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada, is an attacker for the Tigers. He has 35 goals for the Tigers, placing him only behind four others on the squad. The health and exercise science major leads the Tigers with 26 credited assists. So far, he has four drawn exclusions, six steals, and four field blocks this season.
In his freshman year, D'Souza earned an honorable mention on the 2021 Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches Division I All-America Team and was named GCC Newcomer of the Year. He was also elected to the GCC All-Conference Team and All-Freshman Team. D'Souza earned GCC All-Academic honors. He played in all 22 games, recording 25 goals, 27 assists and six steals. He finished ninth in the conference in assists and seventh in assists per game with 1.3.
Djerkovic, Cote and D'Souza all play for the Canadian National Team and most recently competed in the 2022 Fina World League Super Final.
Since the 2010 season, when Pacific had its first finalist for the Cutino Award, the Tigers have had six finalists, the third most behind only USC and UCLA, who each have had 10. Cal is tied with Pacific for six finalists, Stanford has five, and Bucknell has one.
Since 2010, all but one finalist for the Peter J. Cutino award have come from Pacific, UCLA, USC, Cal and Stanford.
Pacific has won the coveted award twice; Balazs Erdelyi won back-to-back awards in the 2012-13 and 2013-14 years.
2019-20 – Luke Pavillard (Finalists: Stanford, UOP, Bucknell)
2017-18 – Luke Pavillard (Finalists: Cal, UOP, UCLA, UCLA)
2015-16 – Alex Obert (Finalists: Stanford, UOP, UCLA)
2013-14 – WON: Balazs Erdelyi (Finalists: UOP, USC, USC)
2012-13 – WON: Balazs Erdelyi (Finalists: UOP, USC, UCLA)
2010-11 – Goran Tomasevic (Finalists: USC, Cal, UOP)
On this year's watchlist, Pacific is tied for the most names on the list with Cal and USC. UCLA has two players on the list.
USA Water Polo release regarding the 2022 watchlist:
Irvine, CA - October 20 - USA Water Polo and The Olympic Club are excited to collaborate with the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) in introducing the Cutino Award Watch List. The Peter J. Cutino Award, named in honor of the late Hall of Fame coach, recognizes the best player in men's and women's college water polo. In an effort to help promote the college game, awareness of the honor, and the excellent play of athletes around the country, we're introducing this watch list. In no particular order, 20 athletes, as submitted by varsity college coaches around the country, are recognized for their excellent play. The top 20 athletes are represented below and are listed in alphabetical order. While it's possible the 2023 Cutino Award winner will come from the list of athletes below, this list of honorees is completely independent of the nomination and voting process of the Cutino Award, as that honor will acknowledge the full impact of the 2022 season. A women's Cutino Award Watch List will be shared in Spring 2023. Congratulations to all the athletes honored!
- Tommaso Baldineti | Mount St. Mary's | Sophomore | Attacker
- Max Casabella | University of California, Berkeley | Sophomore | Attacker
- Jeremie Cote | University of the Pacific | Senior | Utility
- Reuel D'Souza | University of the Pacific | Sophomore | Attacker
- Massimo Di Martire | University of Southern California | Graduate | Attacker
- Bogdan Djerkovic | University of the Pacific | Senior | 2M Defender
- Chase Dodd | University of California, Los Angeles | Sophomore | Attacker
- Jake Ehrhardt | University of Southern California | R-Senior | 2M Defender
- Nir Gross | Fordham University | Graduate | Center
- Tommy Gruwell | University of California, Los Angeles | Senior | Attacker
- Nikola Krstonosic | Salem University | Sophomore | Utility
- Ashworth Molthen | University of Southern California | R-Senior | Attacker
- Nikolaos Papanikolaou | University of California, Berkeley | Junior | Center
- Theodoros Pateros | George Washington University | Graduate | Attacker
- Roko Pozaric | Princeton University | Sophomore | Attacker
- James Rozolis-Hill | Harvard University | Freshman | Utility
- Grant Snyder | United States Air Force Academy | Senior | Utility
- Adrian Weinberg | University of California, Berkeley | Junior | Goalkeeper
- Quinn Woodhead | Stanford University | Graduate | Attacker
- Marko Zivojinovic | Salem University | Freshman | Utility
