SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The 17th-ranked Santa Clara men’s water polo team showed a strong second half Saturday against WWPA opponent Fresno Pacific after battling to a 4-4 tie at halftime. SCU would not lose the lead again, keeping the Sunbirds to just three goals in the second half and scoring five to win their first match of the weekend 9-7.
With this win, the Broncos improve to 10-17 overall and 2-3 in WWPA matchups.
“Last week, we took a couple of tough losses on the road, abeit against good teams,” said Santa Clara Head Coach Keith Wilbur. “Both games we came out strong in the first half, but did not maintain that level of play in the second half.”
Santa Clara won their game today in the second half, closing out strong while stalling the Sunbird offense. Goalkeeper Joe Maestri anchored the Broncos in the goal with 16 saves.
Seven Broncos found the back of the net in today’s game, including two each from Graham McClone and John Raineri. Senior Evan Chang contributed one goal and two earned ejections.
Santa Clara will end their weekend against conference rival No. 18 Air Force Sunday at 12 noon at Sullivan Aquatic Center.
Fresno Pacific 7, #17 Santa Clara 9
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |||||||||||
| Fresno Pacific | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||||||||||
| Santa Clara | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 9 |
Goals: Stephen Warnick (1), Graham McClone (2), Reilley May (1), Evan Chang (1), John Raineri (2), Will Grant (1), Sam Toriggino (1)
Saves: Joe Maestri (16)
