Gauchos hold off Pirates in Saddleback Invite

The Saddleback men's water polo team opened the Saddleback Invitational with a 13-12 win against Ventura College at the Saddleback Aquatics Center on Friday.  The Gauchos received big games from Carson Williams and Justin Allen.

Saddleback came out of the gate quickly, building a 6-2 lead late in the first quarter.  Carson Williams had three goals in the quarter, giving Saddleback an early boost of momentum.

Ventura came storming back in the second quarter, allowing just two Gaucho goals in slicing the lead to 8-6 at the intermission.  The Pirates continued to their run, outscoring Saddleback 4-1 in the third quarter in taking a 10-9 lead into the final quarter.

Saddleback finally reclaimed its mojo in the fourth and final quarter, scoring three goals in the first 1:33 in taking a 12-10 lead.  Williams then scored the deciding goal at 3:29 of the fourth quarter as the Gauchos held on for a 13-12 win.

Saddleback goalkeeper Justin Allen was phenomenal throughout, finishing with 14 saves.  Williams finished with a team-high five goals for the game.

Saddleback will be back in the pool this afternoon when they host Modesto Junior College at 2:50 PM.  Modesto was a 16-11 winner against Southwestern earlier in the morning.