Men’s water polo now 6-2

The Saddleback men's water polo team is off to a great start and picked up a win over Fullerton College on Wednesday at the pool, 10-8.  The 6-2 start is the best since 1998.

Saddleback and Fullerton were in a similar position after dropping their first Orange Empire Conference match of the season last week and desperately needing a win.  The two teams fought tooth and nail before the Gauchos emerged as the winner.

Saddleback trailed 3-1 after the first period and clamped down on defense in the second.  The lone goal of the period came from Max Gonter, who narrowed the gap to 3-2 with 5:55 remaining in the half. 

Things opened up in the third period as both offenses started to gel.  The Gauchos finally took their first lead of the game when Daniel Noble connected with 5:28 remaining to give Saddleback a 5-4 lead.  Gonter again scored at 3:39 as the Gauchos widened the lead to 6-4 before Fullerton responded with two goals to end the period as the teams went to the final eight minutes tied at 6-6. 

Fullerton grabbed back the lead in the opening minute of the fourth period when Brandon Kepley slipped one past Saddleback keeper Jeffrey Rebrukh to give the Hornets the lead.  It would be the last time Fullerton had the lead as Saddleback exploded for four of the next five goals.  The Gauchos evened the game with 4:54 remaining when Noble connected for his second goal of the game.  Trevor Adams then put Saddleback ahead for good just over a minute later, scoring his first goal of the game.  Adams would again score in the final minute for a 10-8 advantage.

Saddleback is now 6-2 overall and 1-1 in Orange Empire Conference play.  The Gauchos will open the Saddleback Invitational Friday morning at 9:00 AM when they host San Diego Miramar College.  The Gauchos will also play Santa Monica College at 2:50 PM on Friday.