LA JOLLA, Calif. – The No. 8 UC Santa Barbara men's water polo team picked up its third win over a ranked opponent in its last four outings on Tuesday, defeating No. 13 UC San Diego on the road 12-8.
The Gauchos will head into their Thursday home openers with a 4-3 record, while the Tritons fall to 2-5.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Goalscorers: McFarland (3), Hawkins (2), Chambliss (2), Sutter, Nangle, Gyenis, McKenzie, Redoutey
Things started out evenly, as both sides matched each other with three first quarter goals. UCSD outscored UCSB 2-1 in the second quarter to take a 4-5-4 advantage into halftime.
Down the stretch though, it was all Gauchos, as the visitors reeled off four goals in each of the final two frames. Center Dash McFarland broke a 6-6 tie with 1:30 to go in the third and attacker Adam Gyenis gave UCSB an 8-7 lead heading into the fourth.
Attackers Tommy Hawkins and Mason Chambliss scored the opening two goals of the final period, each putting away their second of the day. McFarland capped the game-changing 4-0 Gaucho run with his third goal, putting UCSB up 11-7 and giving him his third hat trick in five games.
With 15 seconds remaining, freshman Sam McKenzie provided the finishing touches scoring his second goal of the season.
Danny Roland and Levin Lentin split time evenly at goalkeeper. Roland earned the win while recording five saves. Lentin had three stops.
NEXT UP
On Thursday, Sept. 15, the Gauchos will host their first games of the season in a doubleheader. They start things off against Westcliff at 12:00 p.m. and will end the day with a 5:00 p.m. matchup against No. 9 Pepperdine.
