THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Cal Lutheran men's water polo rolled to a 14-6 victory over UC Merced Thursday afternoon at the Samuelson Aquatics Center, opening its home slate with a strong offensive showing.
The Kingsmen (5-7, 1-1 SCIAC) wasted no time getting on the board, as
Ceasar Nava opened the scoring in the first period.
Levi Cook and
Paul Patterson followed with goals of their own, giving Cal Lutheran a 3-0 advantage heading into the second.
UC Merced finally broke through early in the second, but the Kingsmen answered with three consecutive goals to extend their lead.
Max Gerdeman,
Merrick Giles and
Luke Chang each found the back of the net, sending Cal Lutheran into halftime with a 6-1 advantage.
The Kingsmen continued to pour it on in the third period. After the Bobcats opened the scoring, Patterson scored his second of the afternoon before
Adam Scrivner,
Ethan Guereca and
Noah Carreon added goals to push the lead to 10-2 entering the fourth.
Patterson completed his hat trick early in the fourth, and the Kingsmen continued to control the game offensively.
Carson DaKroob,
Landon Cleveland and
Eric Shea all scored in the final period as Cal Lutheran closed out the 14-6 victory.
The Kingsmen spread the offense around throughout the afternoon, with 11 different players finding the back of the net. Patterson led all scorers with three goals, while Cook posted four points with one goal and three assists. Gerdeman, Giles and Shea each added three points with a goal and two assists.
Dylan Bassler played all 32 minutes in goal and made 10 saves to anchor the Kingsmen defense. Cal Lutheran also finished with 10 steals as a team.
The Kingsmen now head to the Gary Troyer Tournament, hosted by Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Pomona-Pitzer. Cal Lutheran opens tournament play Friday, October 2, against Air Force at 10:15 a.m. at Pomona before facing UC Irvine at 3:15 p.m. at CMS.
