LA JOLLA, Calif. — Seventh-ranked UC San Diego fell just short in its comeback bid Friday night and dropped a 14-12 Big West game to No. 10 Long Beach State.
Following the loss at Canyonview Aquatic Center, the Tritons are now 16-7 overall and 0-2 in conference action. The Beach upped its marks to 12-7 and 2-0.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego scored the first three goals of the game and went on to hold a 5-2 advantage with 7:20 remaining in the second quarter. However, Long Beach State rallied big and scored the game's next seven goals, putting the visitors in front 9-5 at the 5:20 mark of the third period. The Beach out-scored the Tritons 6-1 in the second stanza.
A Beach goal with five seconds left in the third had them in front 11-8. Back-to-back Triton goals by
Mark Laurlund and
Eamon Hennessey to open the fourth quarter brought them back within a single goal at 11-10.
The two teams traded the next four goals. When Long Beach State went ahead 12-10, UC San Diego returned the favor when Hennessey's fourth goal of the night made it 12-11. With just under two minutes left in the fourth, a Beach power play strike moved them ahead by two once again, 13-11. However, Laurlund found the back of the net just 13 seconds later to tighten it up to a one-goal contest, 13-12, with 1:44 left in regulation.
Long Beach State was able to tack on one more goal on a power play with 57 seconds left to ice the victory.
Aside from Hennessey, who matched his career high with the four goals, three other Tritons had a multiple-goal night including
Christian Hammonds, Laurlund, and
Mason Presley, who each scored twice.
Jackson Boettner and
Reef Lippa had single goals.
Felipe Ferreira assisted on three goals. Triton goalie
Alex Hegeman had eight saves and two steals in the game.
Caleb Francisco scored four times for Long Beach State while Jason O'Donnell had three. Toring Stanley finished with four points on two goals and two assists. William Whitstone had nine saves in net.
HEAD COACH MATT USTASZEWSKI INTERVIEW
TRITON TIDBITS
• UC San Diego held a 32-25 advantage in shots.
• The two teams combined for 11 power play goals - six for the Tritons and five for the The Beach.
• UC San Diego won the first (4-2) and fourth (4-3) quarters and the third quarter (3-3) was even.Â
UP NEXT
UC San Diego hosts non-conference opponent Princeton Saturday at 6 p.m. The Tigers are ranked 13th in one poll and 15th in another. The two teams met back on Sept. 19 with the Tritons taking a 14-13 victory in overtime. The game was part of the MPSF Invitational co-hosted by UCLA and USC.
Game tickets are available for purchase online by visiting the linkÂ
HERE or by calling (858) 534-1430. For more ticket information, e-mail the box office atÂ
triton-tix@ucsd.edu.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
