LA JOLLA, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton men's water polo defeated Pomona Pitzer 10-8 before falling to No. 1 Cal 17-7 on day two at the Triton Invitational on Sunday.
Cal State Fullerton 10, Pomona-Pitzer 8
Cal State Fullerton came out strong, grabbing a 3-0 lead after three minutes of play. Jacob Hatch started the scoring off at the 6:38 mark with Nick D'Angelo and Zack Ewing to follow. The Sagehens answered with two goals before D'Angelo brought the Titans up 4-2 to close the first quarter.
Togan Ozbek scored the only Titans goal in the second quarter on a power play, entering overtime with a 5-3 edge over Pomona-Pitzer.
Togan completes the pass from Nico to extend the lead!
— Titans Men's & Women's Water Polo (@Fullerton_WP) September 3, 2023
Sagehens: 3
Titans: 5#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/jgljdR3Lny
Ozbek took advantage of an opening left by the Sagehens, contributing two more goals for the Titans in the third quarter to make the score 7-5.
Julian Nichols wasted no time burying a pass from Ozbek for Fullerton's eighth goal before D'Angelo concluded the third quarter, extending Fullerton's lead to 9-6. Together, Ozbek and D'Angelo combined for six of the 10 Titan goals.
Dominic Hernandez launched a shot into the net to break double digits for the Titans with under two minutes remaining.
Titans enter double digits with a rocket by Dominic Hernandez!��#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/xnH3tEi9FM
— Titans Men's & Women's Water Polo (@Fullerton_WP) September 3, 2023
The Sagehens were able to get two balls past Henderson but came up short 10-8, allowing the Titans to secure their first win of their inaugural season.
Cal 17, Cal State Fullerton 7
The Titans struck first against No. 1 Cal as Ozbek found the back of the net, but the Bears evened the score at 1-1 on the return.
Titans score first!
— Titans Men's & Women's Water Polo (@Fullerton_WP) September 3, 2023
Ozbek records his fourth goal of the day. #TusksUp pic.twitter.com/fhkmWd2dMd
California went on a tear after falling 1-0 to the Titans, leaving the first quarter with a 6-1 jump over the Titans.
D'Angelo connected a backhanded shot in the second quarter to chip away at Cal's 6-2 lead for his fourth goal of the day. Francisco Paredes scored a Titan goal that bounced under the arm of Cal's goalie but still trailed 9-3. The Bears added two more goals, leading the Titans 11-3 at the break.
Seth Zarn replaced Henderson as goalie after halftime and was accompanied by a strong defensive effort that kept Cal from scoring on multiple drives before Ozbek scored the first goal of the second half to bring the score to 11-4. Hernandez brought the Titans within six goals of the Titans with a long drive to the back of the net in the third quarter.
Nichols cut Cal's lead in half, 12-6, on an overhead pass from Ozbek.
Julian Nichols completes the pass from Ozbek to cut Fullerton's deficit in half.
— Titans Men's & Women's Water Polo (@Fullerton_WP) September 4, 2023
Bears: 12
Titans: 6#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/3NBXLIoqBR
Jacob Hatch scored the final goal of the game on a penalty shot after the Bears ran away with a 17-7 win.
Fullerton hits the road for a matchup against Loyola Marymount on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
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Fans can keep up with the latest in Titan Athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook/FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) Instagram (@FullertonTitans). In addition, the water polo teams have established their own Twitter (@Fullerton_WP) and Instagram accounts (@Fullerton_WP).