LA VERNE, Calif. – The fifth-ranked UC Santa Barbara men's water polo team (8-1) took down La Verne 28-6 and Whittier 15-6 on the final day of the Inland Empire Classic tournament on Sunday at Las Flores Pool.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Game one: No. 5 UCSB 28, La Verne 6

• The Gauchos recorded their fourth consecutive 20+ goal showing as a season-high 16 student-athletes scored to defeat La Verne.
• Of the 16, junior attacker Sam Nangle, junior attacker Tommy Hawkins, and freshman driver Adam Gyenis paced the team with hat tricks.
• UCSB junior goalkeeper Danny Roland and the defense held La Verne to a lone goal in three of the four periods in the contest, with the Leopards' best period coming in the second quarter when they scored just three goals.

Game two: No. 5 UCSB 15, Whittier 6

• The Gauchos led 4-1 at the end of the first period and tacked on three goals in the second quarter to take a 7-3 advantage at the half, before they exploded for a seven-goal third period to put any doubt of the blue and gold taking the victory to rest.
• Senior driver Nathan Puentes scored four goals in the win, while senior attackers Cole Brosnan and Sawyer Rhodes each had hat tricks of their own.

NEXT UP

• The Gauchos head to Malibu to take on Westcliff and Pepperdine on Thursday. UCSB's matchup against Westcliff takes place at 2:30 p.m. and the matchup against the Waves will start at 5:00 p.m. The Pepperdine contest will be streamed live, and live stats will be available for both games.

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