RIVERSIDE – For the third time in five years, California Baptist University and UC Davis clashed in the Western Water Polo Association Championship semifinals.Â
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Just like the previous two meetings, it was a battle up until the very end. The 17th-ranked and fourth-seeded Lancers put quite the scare into UC Davis, but the back-and-forth contest ended with the top-seeded and 10th-ranked Aggies in front, 14-9. Fans packed the bleachers for the game on Saturday afternoon at the Lancer Aquatics Center.Â
"We played the best water polo we've played all year long in the first half," Coach
Kevin Rosa said. "We were following the gameplan, doing good things and executing.
"The crowd was amazing, we had alumni here getting the crowd fired up. It was everything you would want in a conference semifinal game. We played our best water polo, but they're a good team that was able to finish better than we did."
Even with the loss, there's no doubt the Lancers are playing their best water polo at the most important time of the year.
"You work all year long to peak at the right time," Rosa said. "I am proud of these guys; we worked through some things and didn't quit when things got tough."
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PJ McDonough led the Lancers with a hat trick, while
Gabe Thorne had another terrific game with 12 saves and three steals in the cage on Saturday.
"Gabe played lights out, he really held it together for us," Rosa said. "I thought he played great for us yesterday and today, he's really played like the goalie we knew he could be. He was outstanding and kept us in the game."
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Senior
Kyle Christian put together one of his best games of the year, with a goal and two assists, while
Riley Bumgardner and
Christian Britton both notched a goal, assist and steal.
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Joseph Galgani extended his point and goal streaks to 25 and 16 games, respectively. The Lancers also got goals from senior
Kyle Johnson and
Logan Mena.
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CBU owned the first half, thanks to a 5-0 run. UC Davis came out and scored the first goals of the game in a minute and a half. The Lancers responded right away and rattled off five-straight goals to give weight to their hopes of an upset, up 5-2 with 5:31 to play in the second quarter.
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McDonough fueled the run, with all three of his goals coming during that nine-minute span. Johnson and Bumgardner both scored in that run, as well.
"PJ did what he had to do. We knew they were going to crash on Logan, every team has done that. That means outside shooters are going to have to shoot some shots, and he was able to do that," Rosa said. "It kept things open for us and had us in the game."
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The Aggies scored two more goals quickly to make it a one-goal game with 4:41 left before halftime. Galgani and Christian put two more in to give CBU a 7-4 edge with 49 seconds to go. A late UC Davis goal made it a two-goal game at the break.
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Despite goals from Britton and Mena, the Aggies fought back to retake the lead, 10-9, going into the fourth quarter. UC Davis' defense held strong over the final minutes to secure the victory.
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CBU will play for third place in the WWPA Championships against sixth-seeded Santa Clara at 10 a.m. Sunday at the Lancer Aquatics Center. The Lancers' best-ever finish at the WWPA Tournament has been fourth place on four other occasions.
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"This is the last game for these guys to play together," Rosa said. "We have a chance to finish the season on a high note, and the guys are bought in."
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