IRVINE, Calif. - Bouncing back from the late-night victory against UC Merced, the men's water polo team tallied their sixth win in a row on Senior Day. The Golden Eagles defeated Fresno Pacific 14-7, sealing their 4-0 conference record.
A sea of Green and Gold came to support the Concordia men's water polo seniors on Saturday afternoon. The men's team celebrated nine seniors for the 2024 season. These phenomenal players included Jacob Stuart, Kevin Shearer, Konstantinos Koulouris, Carlos Olat, Dawson Brummett, Jackson Milius, Stan De Mey, Griffin Beth, and Xander Luckett. The high energy everyone brought to Woollett Aquatic Center was instrumental in the win for the Golden Eagles.
Kaliq Khan started the day strong for Concordia's offense. Not too long after winning the sprint, the sophomore attacker lobbed in the first goal of the game. Thanks to the combined efforts of Kaliq Khan and Sam Diamond, Concordia would go on to win every sprint of the match.
It became a race after that to solidify the lead. Senior Jacob Stuart responded quickly and captured two back-to-back goals. The second goal came from a missed shot off the post that Stuart rallied and bounced into the cage at close range. He caught the Sunbirds by surprise and the crowd asked for more.
Fresno Pacific managed to get a few goals on the board, but Stan De Mey answered in kind and made use of a penalty goal against the Sunbirds. His efforts sealed the 4-2 lead before halftime.
Coming out of halftime, Harry Bentham was a force to reckon with as he brushed past FPU's defense and scored in the first thirty seconds of the third period. Stan De Mey was to thank for the assist. Strong performances from Dawson Brummett, Konstantinos Koulouris, and Sam Diamond kept the Golden Eagles ahead of the Sunbirds. Concordia tallied six goals in the third period to Fresno Pacific's two.
Despite Concordia's intimidating momentum, FPU tried it's best to rally in the third. A few well-time corner shots allowed the Sunbirds to capture four goals in total by the fourth period.
Many of the seniors stepped up in the last eight minutes. In an unforgettable act of defense, Konstantinos Koulouris had a crucial field block that gave Stan De Mey the chance to rush the Sunbird's goalie and hit the tenth goal of the match.
Defensively, Concordia's senior goalie Griffin Beth had ten saves over the course of the match. He was recently named WWPA Defensive Player of the Week for the third time this season.
Jackson Milius had a memorable standing ovation from the crowd as he scored a goal with four minutes left on the clock. It marked his second of the season. Soon after, Dawson Brummett added the last CUI goal to the board with three minutes remaining.
The Golden Eagles have won all four conference games thus far in the season and will be carrying the momentum into next week's WWPA Conference Championships. As the No. 1 seed for the West, Concordia plays an exhibition match against UC Merced on Friday morning at 9 am.
The Golden Eagles will then play in the Semifinals on November 23 at 11 am.
To view the FULL WWPA Conference Championship schedule, CLICK HERE.
