UCSD water polo jumped back in the saddle in a big way on Sunday when it shellacked visiting Claremont College, 13-1.
Guardian
After a dry spell in the win column, which included a disappointing, befuddled showing at the NorCal Tournament in Stockton, the Tritons were primed and ready to resume their winning ways.
The first quarter saw UCSD attack relentlessly with pressure on both sides of the ball, confounding and confusing Claremont goalies in a 2-1 deficit when the quarter ended.
“”We were looking to reverse a trend,”” said Kellan Hori, driver for the Tritons. “”In the last six or seven games we have been slow out of the blocks, and we wanted to change that in this game.””
Despite Claremont scoring the first goal, UCSD was aggressive, as it reeled off 13 consecutive points after Claremont’s initial score.
During the second quarter it looked like the Tritons’ early pressure began to affect Claremont, as UCSD notched three goals to its opponents’ zero. UCSD went into halftime with a commanding 5-1 lead, which it would not relinquish for the rest of the game.
After being so thoroughly dominated in the first half, Claremont came out for the second half looking a little disheartened and flummoxed.
The Tritons, on the other hand, came out ready to rumble, and that they did.
Taking advantage of Claremont’s demeanor, UCSD tacked on four more goals in the third quarter. Just for good measure, it added another four in the fourth quarter to make the final score a demoralizing 13-1 — demoralizing from Claremont’s point of view.
UCSD shared the wealth in this contest. Eleven different players scored goals. Some of the proliferation of scoring might have had to do with the Tritons’ new rotation.
After every goal, the Tritons are throwing a fresh bunch of players into the pool.
“”We want to keep the other team on their heels and really hammer them up and down the court,”” utility man Matthew Ellis said. “”We think we can do that with this rotation.””
Byron Spicer, Paul Motschall, Ken Woodruff and Dave Swinehart threw in a goal each.
Jon Samuels continued his explosive standout year with three goals. Samuels leads the Tritons with 63 goals for the year, a ratio of almost one goal per quarter played.
Jason Boettner and Hori had outstanding contributions to the win. Boettner, though he did not score a goal, had two assists. Hori scored a goal and had three assists.
At goalie, UCSD once again saw two different men between the bars. This was similar to earlier in the season, when it had employed a platoon system for the position, rotating between Glenn Busch and Lance Onken. Later the job went to Busch.
Busch and Onken played against Claremont, and each had very good games. Busch had five saves and one goal against, and Onken had four saves and no goals against.
The Tritons must now begin to look forward to next Saturday’s match against UC Irvine. In the not-so-distant future comes the Western Water Polo Association Championships, which fall on Nov. 17 to Nov. 19. If UCSD does well and wins, the victory will assure it of a chance to compete at the NCAA Championships in Malibu between Dec. 2 and Dec. 3.
With Irvine a top-three team, this match is a definite tattle tape for the Tritons. With a win or a good showing, the Tritons can reaffirm their place in the top echelon of teams. With a bad loss, UCSD will have much work to do to prepare for the season-ending championships.
The Irvine game will take place Saturday at Canyonview Pool. Start time is noon.
