LOS ANGELES – Winning its third consecutive game, the No. 14 Pacific men's water polo program raced out to a big lead Sunday, and the hole proved to be too large for No. 10 LMU in a 15-11 final at the Burns Center.
 
The Tigers (10-5, 4-1 WCC) are now one win away from repeating as West Coast Conference Regular Season champions. It will come down to their final home and conference game against No. 13 Cal Baptist (18-7, 3-0 WCC) at 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 2 at the Eberhardt Aquatics Center. A win for Pacific would solidify the title and the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament.
 
Pacific led 9-2 at halftime and extended it to 10-2 early in the third before LMU (7-9, 1-2 WCC) got its offense going. The Lions trimmed it to a four-goal deficit in the fourth quarter but the Tigers clamped down defensively and didn't allow them to get any closer.
 
Pacific scored the first four goals of the game including a pair from senior Daniel Viscia. After the Lions cut it to 5-2 at the end of the first, Pacific outscored them 4-0 in the second with four different goal scorers.
 
Viscia matched his career-high with five goals on six shots. Freshman Apostolos Georgaras registered a hat trick and two assists, while sophomore Yoav Rendler tallied a goal and four assists.
 
Find the back of the cage twice was both sophomore Ori Buzaglo and freshman Borisz Kasa-Gal. Graduate Manuel Pembertty and freshman Petar Popovic notched a goal apiece.
 
Continuing to come up big in net was freshman goalkeeper Kiss Gergely, the reigning WCC Newcomer of the Week winner. He stood tall with 13 saves after a 14-save performance Friday in the win at No. 8 Pepperdine.
 
The Tigers improved to 14-6 all-time against the Lions and have won 10 of the last 11 meetings.
 
Up next, Pacific will compete in the Santa Clara Invitational next weekend for non-conference matches against No. 19 Harvard, Bucknell and Fresno Pacific. The first game is 12 p.m. Friday against Harvard.
 
Tigers Tickets
Tickets for upcoming events can be purchased through the PacificTigers.com tickets tab, or by calling the Box Office at 209-946-2474. Groups of 10 or more are eligible for a group discount and exclusive fan experiences.
 
Stay Social
For all the latest on Pacific men's water polo, be sure to follow the team on X (@UOPWaterPoloU), Instagram (@pacificwaterpolo) and "like" the team's official Facebook page (Pacific Men's Water Polo).
 
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