UCLA
UC Santa Barbara (Quarterfinal)
No. 1 UCLA Advances to Semifinals with 14-8 Win Over No. 9 UCSB
November 22, 2014 | Men's Water Polo
LOS ANGELES -- The No. 1 UCLA men's water polo team (26-2, 8-0 MPSF) advanced to the semifinals of the 2014 MPSF Tournament with a dominant 14-8 win over No. 9 UC Santa Barbara (10-14 overall) on Friday afternoon at Long Beach State's Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center.
Senior Daniel Lenhart had a game-high three goals to lead the Bruins.
The Bruins jumped out to a 6-0 start at the end of the first period. Lenhart opened the scoring with a power play goal (6:24) and senior Chris Fahlsing added another exclusion goal (5:51) to make it 2-0. Senior Paul Reynolds scored on a counter (5:10) and Lenhart scored his second, also on a counter attack, to make it 4-0 (3:50). Senior David Culpan's bar-down goal (2:43) made it 5-0 and junior Danny McClintick's power play goal (1:53) end the scoring in the first.
The second quarter was a defensive-minded period with both teams scoring just one goal. Bryan Snyder got UCSB on the board on a penalty shot (3:52). Then senior Cristiano Mirarchi scored on a power play goal (2:05) to give the Bruins a 7-1 lead at halftime.
With the sun at their backs, the Bruins put the game away in the third period. McClintick picked up his second goal on a nice lob from four meters out to make it 8-1 (6:44). After UCSB's Chase Racich scored from the front court (6:35), sophomore Ryder Roberts pushed the lead back to seven goals at 9-2 (3:25). Tor Jensen's power play goal cut it to 9-3 (3:04), but the Bruins ended the third with three straight goals. Junior Anthony Daboub scored from the front court (1:52) then Lenhart capped his hat trick with a follow-up off a McClintick lob that hit the bar (1:09). Sophomore Jack Fellner ended the scoring in the third with a score from the front court (0:21) to give the Bruins a 12-3 lead heading into the fourth.
The Gauchos won the fourth after UCLA made wholesale changes. Daboub opened the scoring with a power play goal to make it 13-3 (6:37). But the Gauchos would reel off four straight to pull to within 13-7. Fellner would add his second of the game off a 6-on-5 opportunity (1:50) to make it 14-7. Kenny Constantinides would provide the final of 14-8 with a Gaucho power play with 0:32 remaining.
Sophomore Garrett Danner started in goal for the Bruins and played the first three quarters, registering six saves, while surrendering three goals. Senior Stephen White played the fourth and allowed five goals without a save with the sun in his face. Chris Whitelegge played the entire game in the cage for UCSB and made six saves while allowing all 14 goals.
UCLA was an solid 8-for-10 on power plays while UCSB was 5-for-11. The Gauchos were 1-for-1 on penalty shots while UCLA did not attempt any.
The Bruins return to action on Saturday (Nov. 22) at Long Beach State's Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center in semifinal action of the MPSF Tournament at 1:30 p.m. The Bruins will face No. 4 Long Beach State, which beat No. 5 California, 9-6, in the quarterfinals today.
No. 9 UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 1 UCLA
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| No. 9 UCSB | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 8 |
| No. 1 UCLA | 6 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 14 |
UCSB Goals: Kevin Cappon, Kenny Constantinides, Nicholas Jordan, Bryan Snyder, Samer Alkateb, Chase Racich, Tor Jensen, Cameron Yates
UCSB Saves: Chris Whitelegge 6
UCLA Goals: Daniel Lenhart 3, Danny McClintick 2, Anthony Daboub 2, Jack Fellner 2, Paul Reynolds, Ryder Roberts, Cristiano Mirarchi, David Culpan, Chris Fahlsing
UCLA Saves: Garrett Danner 6
