The Beach headed in right direction

By Manuel Gamiz, Jr., Online Forty-Niner

Tuesday, November 17, 1998

The Long Beach State men's water polo team stretched its winning streak to two games by defeating UC Santa Barbara 11-8 in a non-conference match Saturday afternoon at the Belmont Plaza Pool.

The win marked the third time The Beach has defeated the No. 9 Gauchos this season. The team beat UCSB 9-7 on Sept. 20 at the Southern California Tournament. On Oct. 10, The Beach also defeated the Gauchos 12-8 at the UCSB Campus Pool.

Trailing 5-3 late in the first period, The Beach made a furious comeback led by senior 2-meter man Jeff Colyer.

The Beach outscored the Gauchos 6-0 over the next 12 minutes and 36 seconds to take a 9-5 lead late in the third period. Colyer scored two of the six goals during that span.

The Beach ended up scoring five goals in the third period to build a commanding 11-6 lead going into the final period.

Senior goalie Adam Carter preserved the victory with his work in front of the net. He finished the game by tying his season high of 13 saves. He had 13 saves in a 12-6 loss at USC on Sept. 15. The Gauchos' goalie Lance Wahlert finished the game with 16 saves.

Despite the excellent play from both goalies, The Beach still managed to score 11 goals, including three by Colyer.

The only other LBSU player to score more than one goal was Corey Dolley. Senior defender Vince Trotter, junior drivers Carlo Franzia and Adam Collins, sophomore driver Matt Sakatani and freshman driver Tyler Wawrzynski each scored one goal in the game.

The victory improved the team's record to 10-12, but the team continues to struggle in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play with a 1-5 record.

The Beach will face USC tonight at the Belmont Plaza Pool in a 7 p.m. match. The team will play its final regular season game on Saturday against Pepperdine, beginning at 7 p.m. at the Belmont Plaza Pool.

The team will participate in the MPSF Tournament on Nov. 27-29 at Newport Beach. The Beach currently holds the No. 8 seed, but it can move up to the No. 6 seed with victories in both of its games this week.