Water polo rallies past Tigers

A fifth-place finish in the NorCal Tournament in Stockton, Calif., this past weekend improved the men’s water polo team’s record to 6-1.
The team finished 3-1 for the tournament.
On Saturday morning, the seventh-ranked Waves defeated 14th-ranked UC Davis 14-10.
The Waves started the tournament off on the right foot with a 4-2 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Then, although the team allowed Davis to narrow the gap to 8-7 by the third quarter, it pulled through with the victory, outscoring Davis 6-3 to close the game.
Senior Nathan Castillo led the team with five goals, and goalie sophomore Bence Valics recorded a solid 15 saves.
In the second game, the men’s water polo team lost a tough one to second-ranked California 8-7.
By the end of the third quarter the game appeared over as the team fell behind 8-5. However, in the fourth quarter it rallied back with two goals, but it was not enough to overtake the Bears.
“The Cal game was the most emotional and encouraging,” junior Parker Peterson said. “They were ranked No. 2, and if we had beaten them we would have been in the top four.
“It was super encouraging to know that we can compete with a higher ranked team, and I think it made us believe in ourselves a little more, but it was definitely hard to be so close and lose.”
The next day, the team rallied and went on to beat sixth-ranked UC Santa Barbara 7-6.
Leading the entire match, the Waves managed to hold off Santa Barbara in the fourth quarter, even as the Gauchos attempted to fight back, scoring a goal to close the deficit to within one with 2:37 left.
Senior Andrew Milcovich and junior Danny White helped out with two goals each. Valics pulled through strong, deflecting 16 shots.
In the final game, the team knocked off fifth-ranked Pacific 14-11 to steal fifth place.
At the end of each quarter the teams were tied, but the Waves prevailed when it counted most, outscoring the Tigers 4-1 in the fourth quarter.
“UOP was ranked ahead of us and we were at their home pool so it was a big game,” Peterson said. “We were able to establish ourselves as one of the big players this year.”
Castillo, Milcovich, White and junior Matthew DeTrane, contributed to the team’s underdog victory with three goals apiece.
Next up, the men’s water polo team plays in an away game against third-ranked UCLA Friday.
“The UCLA game should be a great game since they only beat Cal by one,” Peterson said. “We did well against them this summer, so we know we can definitely beat them.”
As for the remainder of the season, the team looks forward to more exciting match-ups, and hopefully more exciting victories as well.
“Our goal is to come to every game with energy and treating every game as if it’s make or break,” Peterson said. “We plan on having some more big wins this year and going on a run for the championship spot.”