Men's Water Polo

UC Santa Barbara’s Luigi Canepa Collects Fourth Weekly Distinction of 2026

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Men's Water Polo Player of the Week 
Luigi Canepa, UC Santa Barbara | Freshman • Attacker • Belgrade, Serbia

  • 25021UC Santa Barbara attacker Luigi Canepa delivered a 10-point performance to earn Big West Men’s Water Polo Player of the Week honors for the week of Oct. 7, presented by Kap7 International. This is the fourth distinction for Canepa this season (Sept. 9, 16, Oct. 7, 2026). 

  • Canepa factored into 10 of the Gauchos’ 14 goals in Friday’s road win at No. 8 UC San Diego, scoring six times and handing out four assists in the 14-8 victory.

  • The Belgrade, Serbia, native leads The Big West with 71 goals and a 3.2 goals-per-game average through 22 appearances.

  • Another ranked road victory lifted UC Santa Barbara to 19-9 overall and evened the Gauchos’ Big West record at 1-1.
Also Nominated: Michael Abshier (UC Santa Barbara), Jackson Boettner (UC San Diego), Samuel Brano (Cal State Fullerton), Marc Frigola (Long Beach State), Alex Lopez (UC Irvine)