DAVIS, Calif. - At the two-day Aggie Shootout hosted by UC Davis, the Cal Lutheran men's water polo team faced a trio of Division I teams as their preseason schedule continues to be a challenging one.
The weekend opened on Friday evening against Santa Clara in the closest contest of the tournament for the Kingsmen. After the first two periods the teams were knotted at 4-4 and after the third it was locked up at 7-7. A scoreless fourth frame in which SC netted five goals was the difference.
During the 12-7 loss, CLU got goal from seven different players and field blocks from four. Zack Card and Tyler Graper tallied one of each and both players also earned a steal while Card drew an ejection and Graper recorded an assist. AJ Franklin and Camron Hauer drew a pair of ejection apiece in the game as well. Guarding the goal, Jesse Owen came up with 13 saves for the Violet and Gold.
On Saturday, CLU was defeated 17-5 by host UC Davis. Shea Craig was the only player to produce more than one goal as he finished with two. Again, four different Kingsmen dished out assists. Defensively, Franklin led the way with four steals and Jack Acampora came up with two while Owen recorded 12 saves in front of the cage.
The weekend finale pitted CLU against the University of the Pacific. Cal Lutheran dropped a 21-5 decision to the Tigers though Craig had his second two-goal game of the day. The rest of the scoring was spread out once more. Hauer earned the Kingsmen a pair of 6-on-5 opportunities with two drawn ejections and he also led the way with a pair of steals. Card and Craig each came up with field blocks in the game. The goalkeeping duties were split between Owen (one quarter), Zach Loza (two quarters) and Michael Walk (one quarter) for his collegiate debut.
Cal Lutheran (0-7) returns to Southern California to play at the Gary Troyer Tournament Oct. 3-4. The four games will take place over two days at three different pools. On Friday, CLU will face Gannon at Las Flores Park and Washington & Jefferson at Axelrood Pool at 10:20 a.m. and 3:20 p.m., respectively.
Box Score: SC 12, CLU 7
Box Score: UCD 17, CLU 5
Box Score: UOP 21, CLU 5
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