LBSU
closes out season strong with big road win
By Jack Schneider
On-line Forty-Niner
The
Long Beach State men’s water polo team defeated
Pepperdine, 8-6, as 49ers sophomore Erik
Geoffroy dismantled the Waves defense with
five goals on Saturday.
 Although
this match was a non-conference game, the
49ers improved to 15-14, while the Waves,
which won the MPSF regular season title
with a 7-1 record, fell to 13-9 overall.
The 49ers and the Waves were deadlocked
at 3-3 midway through the second quarter,
matching one another score for score.
However, the 49ers staged a strong surge
in the closing minutes before halftime to
permanently claim and cushion their lead.
Geoffroy fired in a shot at the 5:29 mark
in the second to propel The Beach to a 4-3
advantage.
Senior Kellyn Carlson then scored one at
the 4:32 mark to boost the lead to 5-3,
and sophomore John Filipponi’s goal with
under one minute remaining to pile on a
6-4 halftime lead.
In the third quarter, Pepperdine’s Jeremy
Grubbs’ shot his third goal of the game,
narrowing the gap for the Waves to make
it a 6-5 Pepperdine deficit.
But the 49ers were able to keep a strong
defense against the Waves, allowing Geoffroy
ample time to score his fourth goal at the
1:16 mark in the third.
Tying his career-high record for goals,
Geoffroy added in another one at the 3:28
mark in the fourth.
In addition, LBSU junior Nathan Allard put
the 49ers on the board early, scoring the
first goal of game at 6:16 in the first.
LBSU freshman goalie Thomas Onyshko racked
up 12 saves and shutout the Waves in the
fourth quarter.
The next game for the 49ers will be the
2002 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation
men’s water polo championships on Nov. 29
through Dec. 1, as LBSU will host the tournament
at the Joint Forces Training Base in Los
Alamitos.
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