CLAREMONT, Calif. – Cal Lutheran men's water polo dropped both of its games Friday at the Gary Troyer Invitational, falling 13-6 to Air Force in the morning before suffering a 19-9 setback against UC Irvine in the afternoon.
GAME ONE: AIR FORCE 13, CAL LUTHERAN 6
The Kingsmen kept pace with Air Force early, trailing just 3-2 after the opening period.
Paul Patterson,
Dylan Moscoso,
Merrick Giles, and
Levi Cook provided the offense for Cal Lutheran in the first two periods, but Air Force used a strong second quarter to take an 8-4 lead into halftime.
Air Force continued to build its advantage in the third period, scoring four times while limiting the Kingsmen to one goal. Giles scored his second of the game, but the Falcons carried a 12-5 lead into the final period.
Patterson added a late goal in the fourth, but Air Force held on for the 13-6 victory.
Cal Lutheran generated 35 shots compared to 33 for Air Force, but the Falcons' goalkeepers combined for 17 saves.
Jaeger Gonzales played all 32 minutes in goal for the Kingsmen and made 14 saves.
GAME TWO: UC IRVINE 19, CAL LUTHERAN 9
The Kingsmen made the short trip to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps for their afternoon matchup with UC Irvine. The Anteaters came out firing, scoring six goals in the opening period before taking an 11-4 advantage into halftime.
Cal Lutheran found some offensive rhythm in the third, scoring four goals, including two from Cook. The Kingsmen also received goals from
Adam Scrivner and
Bennett Bayha, but UC Irvine answered with six of its own to take a 17-8 lead into the final period.
Cook completed his three-goal performance in the fourth as the Kingsmen continued to battle, but the Anteaters added two more goals to secure the 19-9 victory.
Cook led Cal Lutheran with five points on three goals and two assists. Patterson added two goals and an assist, while
Max Gerdeman contributed two assists.
Adam Scrivner,
Ceasar Nava,
Luke Larson and
Bennett Bayha each scored once.
