CLAREMONT, Calif. — Chad Castro notched a hat trick and the University of La Verne men's water polo team jumped out to an early lead against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, but could not sustain the momentum in a 13-6 loss on Saturday at Axelrod Pool.
La Verne falls to 4-13 overall and 0-1 in the SCIAC. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps improves to 11-7 and 1-0.
Castro notched the game's opening goal at the 5:05 mark in the first quarter and the Leopards played tough defense to keep it close. Michael Nguyen scored the Leopards' second goal in the frame and Bryan Jimenez found the net with five seconds remaining to give La Verne a 3-2 lead after one period.
But the Stags clamped down defensively in the second quarter and outscored La Verne, 4-0, and never looked back. The Leopards woke up in the third quarter for three more tallies, including two from Castro, but the Stags kept up the pressure with four goals of their own. The Leopards were shut out once again in the fourth quarter.
La Verne returns to action at home on Wednesday against Caltech. First sprint is at 4 p.m.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 13, La Verne 6
Oct. 17, 2015 • Claremont, Calif.
LV 3 – 0 – 3 – 0 = 6
CMS 2 – 4 – 4 – 3 = 13
SCORING:
LV – Chad Castro 3, Michael Nguyen, Bryan Jimenez, Andrew Phillips
CMS – Tanner Cullen 3, Adam Hilborn 2, Eric Bakar 2, Daniel Cogan 2, Ellison Taylor, Matt Daruty, Noah Deer, Alex Waggoner