Pepperdine nets 49ers
By Tom Harshbarger
Daily Forty-Niner
Mistakes and penalties derailed No. 5 Long
Beach State in the final quarter as No. 6 Pepperdine took advantage and
grabbed a 9-8 victory in men's water polo action Saturday at the Campus
Pool.
MEN'S WATER POLO
The game was the 49ers' regular-season
finale and gave them a 12-12 record on the season, improving from 10-14
last season.
Senior Shane Lindstrom, who led the team
with three goals, pointed to missed opportunities in the loss.
"We just didn't execute when we needed
to execute," Lindstrom said. "We couldn't shut them down when they got
an advantage on us."
LBSU penalties gave the Waves a one-man
advantage twice in the final period, and they capitalized both times.
After swapping goals most of the game,
the 49ers took a 6-5 edge into the fourth quarter.
That lead evaporated when Pepperdine scored
the next four points off the penalties as well as turnovers.
Patrick Cochran scored with 4:19 left to
make it 9-7, and Lindstrom scored with 1:13 remaining to bring the 49ers
within one.
The team had possession one last time in
the final seconds, but failed to score.
The Waves (12-11) took possession at the
end and ran out the clock.
"We lost the game because we didn't want
to win bad enough," 49er Head Coach Ricardo Azevedo said.
While the loss would have given the 49ers
some momentum going into the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament
this weekend, Azevedo still seemed confident in his team's chances.
"We're more powerful and faster than anybody
right now," he said without hesitation.
"Are their heads and hearts going to show
up at the same time? I think they will, but only time will tell."
The MPSF Tournament begins Friday at UC
Irvine.
The 49ers will face No. 4 UC Berkelely
at 10:30 a.m. Cal has beaten LBSU twice this season. |
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