Davis, CA:  The CMA Water Polo team showed signs of life this week-end, the first conference week-end of the Pacific Coast Conference season.  The Keelhaulers faced three ranked teams including #10 UCLA, #18 St Mary’s, and #1 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. 

CMA started the week-end facing #10 UCLA.  As with earlier games this season, the game was close throughout, with the Keelhaulers leading 4-3 at the half, and the game tied at 5 after three quarters.  The game was again tied at 6 with 5 minutes left, but UCLA scored with 3:48 left to earn the win.  Cole Van Gundy and Bryan Zitren led the CMA scorers with two goals each, and Phil Spann and Nic Beene tallied one each.  Goalie Blake Amon recorded 12 saves.

                                    1          2          3          4          F

UCLA                         2          1          2          1          7 

Cal Maritime                3          1          1          1          6 

In the second game, Maritime faced arch-rival St Mary’s ranked #18 in the latest national poll.  It was the second time in a week that the two teams have faced each other.  Like the first game, this game was another barnburner.  The game was tied at 3 at the half, and the Keelhaulers led 5-4 at the end of three.  In the fourth quarter, CMA stretched their lead to 6-4 before St Mary’s mounted a furious comeback, scoring three goals to take a 7-6 lead with 34 seconds left in the game.  After a time out, Soph Nic Beene scored for CMA with 16 seconds left to tie the game at 7 and send it into overtime.  Unfortunately, the overtime was all St Mary’s as the Gaels scored three unanswered goals to win the game 10-7.

Soph Evan Markstrum scored three goals for the Keelhaulers, and Sr Fletcher McCue, Fr Bryan Zitren, Soph Phil Spann, and Soph Nic Beene scored one each.  Blake Amon had 8 saves.

1          2          3          4          OT1     OT2     F

St Mary’s                     2          1          1          3          0          0          10 

Cal Maritime                3          0          2          2          0          0          7 

The Keelhaulers faced Chico State in the third game of the week-end.  After coming close in the first two games, Maritime started the game with a vengeance, jumping out to a 5-1 lead after the first quarter.  CMA led 7-2 at the half, 8-3 after three, and scored three times in the fourth to win going away 11-3.  Senior Robert Taylor scored his first goal of the year to end the scoring with 54 seconds left in the game.

Soph Evan Markstrum and Fr Bryan Zitren scored three apiece, Sr Jeff Balistreri added two goals, and Jr Lynn Langdon, Soph Adron Beene, and Sr Robert Taylor tossed in one each.  Sr Blake Amon notched 17 saves.

                                    1          2          3          4          F

Chico State                  1          1          1          0          3         

Cal Maritime                5          2          1          3          11       

The final game of the week-end saw CMA in the pool against perennial national champion and #1 ranked Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.  Validating the improved level of play by Maritime, the game was a battle throughout.  The game was tied at 1 at the end of the first quarter.  SLO pulled out to a 4-2 lead at the half, but the Keelhaulers clawed back to tie the game at 5 with 2:00 left in the third period.  Poly pulled ahead again in the fourth, and CMA kept up the pressure, answering each goal until SLO managed  to pull away for a 11-7 win.  It was the closest game that Cal Poly played all week-end.

Soph Adron Beene lead the Keelhaulers with three goals, and Soph Evan Markstrum, Fr Peter Gillette, Sr Fletcher McCue, and Fr Bryan Zitren added one each.  Goalie Blake Amon played a great game in the goal, with 13 saves.

1          2          3          4          F

Cal Poly SLO              1          4          2          3          10       

Cal Maritime                1          2          2          2          7