CYPRESS, CA - The Cypress Chargers men's water polo team (1-2) hosted a three game mini tournament on Friday afternoon at Cypress College. The Chargers took game one of the double-header against Rio Hondo, 19-16. Cypress faced a tough opponent in game two and fell to Cuesta, 21-7.
In game one sophomore, Cameron Davidson led the Chargers with 12 goals followed by freshman, John Howard Zeff who scored four. In quarter three, Davidson scored three goals in the final three minutes to keep Cypress in the match. Cameron began quarter four with two goals in the first two minutes and pushed the game to overtime with two more goals in the quarter, tying it up at 15 a side. Zeff gave the Chargers a one goal lead when he scored off a beautiful assist from Cody Belthius. The Chargers were able to score four goals in the overtime period, winning the game 19-16.
The Chargers faced tougher competition in game two as they battled a strong defense in Cuesta College. The Chargers struggled to get the offense going, trailing 7-2 after the first quarter. The Cuesta offensive attack began to take over in the second half, where they took control of the game, defeating the Chargers 21-7.
Q: What can the Chargers take away from today's matches and bring into tomorrow's game against Chaffey?
A: Head Coach Mark Canner: "As a young program, we have about 20 freshman, both men's and women's, and there is a lot to learn on the pool deck. I believe we did such a better job today than we did on Wednesday against Grossmont. A really good practice on Thursday led to a really good game on Friday. Cuesta is a top five team and the scoreboard may not show it, but our defense improved greatly. We are a defensive-minded program and I saw a big jump from Wednesday to today. The overtime win is fantastic and something we can take in to tomorrow to continue to earn quality wins against tough opponents."
UP NEXT: The Chargers will be back on the pool deck tomorrow morning at 9AM to take on Chaffey College. The Chaffey Panthers will open up their season as the Chargers look to bounce back.
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