CLAREMONT, Calif. - This morning on the road the Cal Lutheran men's water polo team used a fourth quarter surge to earn a 7-6 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) victory at Pomona-Pitzer in the final first round game of the fall.

It was a defensive battle throughout today in the pool. PP took a quick 3-2 lead after the first eight minutes and CLU knotted things before halftime while holding the Sagehens scoreless. The third quarter was the opposite with the home team outscoring the Violet and Gold 1-0. The Hens held a 4-3 edge going into the fourth frame. Knotted at 6-6 with just under a minute to play, patience paid off for the Kingsmen.

"I posted up outside the five-meters on the counter attack and AJ [Franklin] was patiently holding the ball waiting for the right time to enter the ball," winning-goal scorer Shea Craig shared. "I snapped off my defender, skipping the ball cross cage and scoring."

Not only did Craig score the winning goal, he did so in an isolated play with a former club teammate he grew up playing water polo with according to head coach Craig Rond.

Though Craig scored the final goal of the day, George French was instrumental to the offense with a hat-trick and Chris Gardhouse handed out two assists while drawing a team-leading three ejections. Ryan Moguel finished with two.

Defense shined today with six total field blocks, two apiece from Zack Card and Camron Hauer. Nick Loomis did the goalkeeping and recorded 11 saves with a steal. Gardhouse was a menace with four steals to lead the way.

Cal Lutheran (10-12, 4-4 SCIAC) evened its SCIAC record to round out play in the regular season. Entering the SCIAC Tournament that begins on Friday, Nov. 20, the Kingsmen are seeded fifth.

Box Score: CLU 7, PP 6 - box score unavailable at time of release
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