Oct. 5, 2008

Stockton, Calif.- The Pacific men's water polo team fell to No. 3 Stanford on Sunday Octboer 5th, 10-2 at Chris Kjeldsen Pool. The loss dropped the Tigers to 8-8 overall, while Stanford moved to 10-2 on the year.

Stanford struck twice within the first two minutes of play to take an early 2-0 lead, behind goals from Drac Wigo and Sage Wright. Wigo again found the back of the net at the 5:10 mark, to put Stanford ahead 3-0.

The Tigers caught a break with a five meter penalty shot, and senior William Milcovich (Walnut Creek, Calif.) converted to bring Pacific back, trailing only 3-1 with 4:00 remaining. With the aggressive play continuing, the Tigers gave up a five meter penalty shot to Wigo, and he again scored to earn his third goal of the period, putting Stanford ahead 4-1.

Peter Sefton added one more for the Cardinal, and Stanford led 5-1 after the first period.

The second period began in similar fashion to the first, with Stanford getting on the board early. Wigo scored two more goals in the first 1:45 of the period to give Stanford a 7-1 lead. Jeffrey Schwimer added a goal for Stanford with 3:00 left to put the visitors on top, 8-1.

The teams went back and forth for several minutes, neither team allowing the other to get the wide open shot. Time ran out on the half, with the Tigers trailing by seven, 8-1.

Needing a strong rally, the Tigers entered the second half determined to claw back in the contest. The offense was pushing hard, firing shot after shot on the Stanford defense, and the defensive front for Pacific was strong. The new look Tigers finally broke through on a stellar pass to the center, with redshirt junior Grant Hollis (Redlands, Calif.) netting his first goal of the game.

The Tigers continued to push hard against the Cardinals, and their effort was rewarded as Pacific outscored Stanford 1-0 in the third period. The lone scored chipped away at the Cardinal lead, to cut the lead to 8-2 in favor of Stanford.

With momentum on their side, Pacific began the final quarter with the same aggressive style as the third. The defense held strong until the 4:30 point, when yet again Wigo scored his sixth goal of the contest for the Cardinal, to increase their lead 9-2. Stanford answered again with a goal by Chris Jacobson to extend the lead and keep the Tigers at bay, 10-2.

Pacific was led by Hollis and Milcovich who each had one goal for the Tigers. Senior goalie Brian Domecus (Vallejo, Calif.) posted 11 saves.

Stanford was led by Wigo's six goals.

Pacific is next in action, Saturday October 11th, as they face Loyola Marymount in the first round of the Southern California Touranment at 12:00 pm.