Sept. 30, 2007
Colorado Springs, Colo. - The Pacific men's water polo team defeated Cal Lutheran by a score of 19-7 and No. 16 Air Force by a score of 11-7 on Sept. 30 in the East Meets West Tournament in Colorado Springs, Colo. With the two victories, the Tigers went a perfect 4-0 in tournament play and were named the tournament champions. The Pacific water polo team is now 7-8 on the year. They are 0-1 in MPSF play.
In the first game of the day, the Tigers defeated Cal Lutheran by a score of 19-7 to earn a spot in the championship game against Air Force, who they had already beaten in the first game of the tournament. In the win, Will Milcovich (Walnut Creek, Calif.), Duje Kaurloto (Split, Croatia), and Mike Struempf (Pleasant Hill, Calif.) each netted four goals a piece to lead all scorers.
Other Tigers adding goals in Pacific's win over Cal Lutheran were Dragan Bakic (Split, Croatia), Kenny Yamamoto (San Juan Capistrano), Austin Delong (Houston, Texas) and Brett Hirsch (Brea, Calif.). Bakic scored three goals, Yamamoto tallied two, and Hirsch and Delong each scored once.
In the championship game of the tournament, Pacific faced the Air Force for the second time in as many days. In the contest, the Tigers jumped out early taking a 6-2 advantage into the half and holding on at the end as each team netted five goals in the second half.
Kaurloto led all scorers in the championship game with five goals and was named to the all-tournament team after the game for his performances throughout the event. Also scoring for the Tigers were Milcovich, Struempf, and Bakic. They each had three goals in the game and with a total of twelve goals in the tournament Bakic was named the tournament MVP.
The Tigers will next be in action when they take on UC Davis on Oct. 5 in Stockton, Calif. The game will start at 3:00 p.m.
GAME ONE:
Pacific: 8 - 8 - 0 - 3 = 19
Cal Lutheran: 0 - 2 - 4 - 1 = 7
GAME ONE GOALS:
Milcovich 4; Kaurloto 4; Struempf 4; Bakic 3; Yamamoto 2; Delong 1; Hirsch 1
GAME TWO:
Pacific: 4 - 2 - 3 - 2 = 11
Air Force: 2 - 0 - 4 - 1 = 7
GAME TWO GOALS:
Kaurloto 5; Milcovich 2; Struempf 2; Bakic 2
