IRVINE, Calif. — A late rally came up short for the UC San Diego men's water polo team as it fell by an 11-8 score to Long Beach State Saturday in a Big West Championship semifinal.
The Tritons (21-10) came in as the fourth seed while Long Beach State (17-8) is the top seed.
In Saturday's second semifinal, third-seeded UC Davis topped UC Santa Barbara, the second seed, 15-7.
Long Beach State and UC Davis face off Sunday for the conference title and automatic berth in the upcoming NCAA National Collegiate Championship.
UC Irvine is hosting the Big West Championship at Anteater Aquatics Complex in Orange County.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Jackson Boettner scored the first goal of the game just 57 seconds in to give UC San Diego an early lead. Long Beach State's Gabi Acosta evened it with a power play goal at the 3:33 mark of the opening quarter, but
Ante Buzov returned the favor by scoring on a man-up opportunity 26 seconds later to put the Tritons back in front, 2-1. That would prove to be the final lead for UC San Diego.
A five-meter penalty shot conversion at 2:48 of the first kicked off a five-goal run for the Beach, which pushed its lead to 6-2 with 1:29 remaining in the second quarter.
The third frame saw a repeat of the second as Long Beach State again out-scored UC San Diego 3-1. A goal by Marc Frigola at the two-minute mark of the third put the Beach up 9-3, with the six-point lead its largest of the game.
The Tritons responded, scoring the game's next four goals to get back within two.
Reef Lippa ignited the flame by scoring with just four ticks left in the third. In the final stanza,
Lucas Romaguera scored at 4:37 and was followed at 3:46 when Lippa found the back of the net again. With 2:36 remaining in the fourth,
Mark Laurlund beat the goalie to bring the Tritons within a deuce at 9-7.
Harper Stewart put the Beach ahead by three at 1:57, but that was quickly answered by
Mason Presley at 1:19 to keep UC San Diego within striking distance at 10-8. However, Acosta tallied his fourth goal of the game with only 55 ticks on the clock, essentially sealing the victory for Long Beach State.
Presley finished with two goals and an assist, while Boettner (one goal, one assist), Laurlund (one goal, one assist), and Lippa (two goals) each recorded two points.
Alex Hegeman made eight saves and grabbed a steal in net for UC San Diego.
Joseph Jenness turned aside 14 Triton bids as the goalie for the Beach. Stewart dished out three assists to go along with a goal to match Acosta with four points.
Both squads struggled on the power play with Long Beach State going 1-for-14 (.071) and UC San Diego going 2-for-14 (.143).
MATT USTASZEWSKI INTERVIEW
TRITON TIDBITS
• The Tritons defeated fifth-seeded UC Irvine 11-8 in Friday's first round.
• UC San Diego and Long Beach State met in the title game of the 2024 Big West Championship with the Beach taking a 10-8 victory.
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.
