Saturday, September 14
Los Angeles
11:20 AM
California Baptist University
11
vs
16
UC Irvine
Lancers Stand Strong In Top-10 Tests
9/14/2019 5:04:00 PM | Men's Water Polo
LOS ANGELES – California Baptist University got its biggest test of the early season on Saturday.
While the 20th-ranked Lancers did not come away with a win, they hung tight with two top-10 ranked teams, No. 8 Pepperdine and No. 9 UC Irvine, at the Western Water Polo Association/Golden Coast Conference Challenge Cup, which was hosted by Loyola Marymount at the Burn's Aquatics Center.
"We played better today," Coach Kevin Rosa said. "The results are unfortunate. We aren't going to feel good that we didn't get a win, but we improved. We played better defense overall, our activity and movement was much better. We gave ourselves an opportunity to do some good things."
The Lancers dominated the fourth quarter in a 13-11 loss to Pepperdine after a close 16-11 contest with UC Irvine earlier in the day. Zach Lowery logged a team-high seven points and six goals on the day, while PJ McDonough also scored five times.
Logan Mena added three goals and 11 drawn ejections over both games, while Riley Bumgardner had five assists. Gabe Thorne finished with 21 saves overall.
After trailing by as many as six with nine-and-a-half minutes to play, the Lancers fought all the way back within a goal in just five-and-a-half minutes versus Pepperdine. The Waves appeared to be headed to a comfortable win when they went up 11-5 with 1:22 left in the third quarter.
Two goals from Lowery and one each from Angel Sanchez, McDonough, Thomas de Wit and Mena brought CBU within 12-11 with 3:54 to play. Pepperdine got an insurance goal with 2:17 left to pull and that ended the scoring.
"We got some defensive stops," Rosa said of what was key to the run. "Runs are easier to get when you get some stops because it starts good mojo. Gabe came up with two or three big blocks for us, and we kept going at it on offense."
Lowery logged three goals and an assist against Pepperdine, while Christian Britton had two assists and a goal of his own. Sanchez finished with two goals, while Mena had a goal and six drawn ejections.
"The offense has been solid all year long, we have a lot of weapons," Rosa said. "Our centers are playing great and we have some lefties and some speed. Offensively, we are doing everything we need to do. The offense is giving us chances to win."
CBU matched the Anteaters goal for goal over the first half, as both teams went into the break tied 7-7. The Lancers gave themselves a chance to win, down just two, 12-10 going into the fourth quarter.
UCI won the final eight minutes to secure the victory. McDonough scored a team-high four goals and Lowery had a hat trick of his own in the loss. Mena scored twice and drew five ejections, while Bumgardner had four assists in the loss.
While the 20th-ranked Lancers did not come away with a win, they hung tight with two top-10 ranked teams, No. 8 Pepperdine and No. 9 UC Irvine, at the Western Water Polo Association/Golden Coast Conference Challenge Cup, which was hosted by Loyola Marymount at the Burn's Aquatics Center.
"We played better today," Coach Kevin Rosa said. "The results are unfortunate. We aren't going to feel good that we didn't get a win, but we improved. We played better defense overall, our activity and movement was much better. We gave ourselves an opportunity to do some good things."
The Lancers dominated the fourth quarter in a 13-11 loss to Pepperdine after a close 16-11 contest with UC Irvine earlier in the day. Zach Lowery logged a team-high seven points and six goals on the day, while PJ McDonough also scored five times.
Logan Mena added three goals and 11 drawn ejections over both games, while Riley Bumgardner had five assists. Gabe Thorne finished with 21 saves overall.
After trailing by as many as six with nine-and-a-half minutes to play, the Lancers fought all the way back within a goal in just five-and-a-half minutes versus Pepperdine. The Waves appeared to be headed to a comfortable win when they went up 11-5 with 1:22 left in the third quarter.
Two goals from Lowery and one each from Angel Sanchez, McDonough, Thomas de Wit and Mena brought CBU within 12-11 with 3:54 to play. Pepperdine got an insurance goal with 2:17 left to pull and that ended the scoring.
FIRST QUARTER
— CBU Men's Water Polo (@LancerWaterPolo) September 14, 2019
#️⃣20 CBU 3️⃣
#️⃣8️⃣ Pepperdine 3️⃣#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/0Gvq2IcWTB
"We got some defensive stops," Rosa said of what was key to the run. "Runs are easier to get when you get some stops because it starts good mojo. Gabe came up with two or three big blocks for us, and we kept going at it on offense."
Lowery logged three goals and an assist against Pepperdine, while Christian Britton had two assists and a goal of his own. Sanchez finished with two goals, while Mena had a goal and six drawn ejections.
"The offense has been solid all year long, we have a lot of weapons," Rosa said. "Our centers are playing great and we have some lefties and some speed. Offensively, we are doing everything we need to do. The offense is giving us chances to win."
THIRD QUARTER
— CBU Men's Water Polo (@LancerWaterPolo) September 14, 2019
#️⃣9️⃣ UC Irvine 12
#️⃣20 CBU 🔟
PJ McDonough gets his 🧢 trick and Logan Mena scores twice in the quarter. #LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/zZq7t80Ps9
CBU matched the Anteaters goal for goal over the first half, as both teams went into the break tied 7-7. The Lancers gave themselves a chance to win, down just two, 12-10 going into the fourth quarter.
UCI won the final eight minutes to secure the victory. McDonough scored a team-high four goals and Lowery had a hat trick of his own in the loss. Mena scored twice and drew five ejections, while Bumgardner had four assists in the loss.
FIRST QUARTER
— CBU Men's Water Polo (@LancerWaterPolo) September 14, 2019
#️⃣20 CBU 2️⃣
#️⃣9️⃣ UC Irvine 2️⃣
PJ McDonough and Zach Lowery have scored for CBU. Gabe Thorne has several big saves, including one on a penalty shot. #LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/qJO2ra3LPp
Players Mentioned
ATT
/ Men's Water Polo
ATT
/ Men's Water Polo
ATT
/ Men's Water Polo
ATT
/ Men's Water Polo
2MD
/ Men's Water Polo
2M
/ Men's Water Polo
ATT
/ Men's Water Polo
G
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