A dominant fourth quarter led California Baptist University to a win in its final game of the regular season and its best-ever finish in the Western Water Polo Association Championships.
The 17th-ranked and fourth-seeded Lancers defeated sixth-seeded Santa Clara 12-10, in the third-place game of the WWPA Championships on Sunday at the Lancer Aquatics Center. It also marked the first time in the NCAA era and since 2012 that CBU ended a season with a victory.
"It feels really good. We came to this tournament for a championship, but we played really well all weekend," Coach Kevin Rosa said. "I told the guys the season is to peak at the end and we played our best water polo here this weekend. It was great to end the season on a high note.
We'are all tied 88 on PJ McDonough's second goal of the game.
It was all thanks to a 5-2 run in the fourth quarter, as CBU went into the fourth down to the Broncos, 8-7. PJ McDonough scored three of his game-high four goals over the final eight minutes and finished with five points, thanks to an assist.
"PJ shot the lights out, the fact our starting center defender led us in scoring this weekend just shows his versatility," Rosa said. "If I am picking someone to shoot from the perimeter in the fourth quarter, he's the one."
Gabe Thorne continued to be anchor in the cage, with 12 saves and a 54.5 save percentage (12-22). Sophomore Riley Bumgardner (three assists, one goal) and junior Zach Lowery (two goals, two assists) both notched four points, while Christian Britton (two goals, one assist) had three of his own, with all of them coming in the second half.
The Lancers also got two goals from Joseph Galgani and one from Angel Sanchez. McDonough and Thorne earned WWPA All-Tournament first-team honors, while Galgani made the second team.
Could you love a goalie more?
CBU ends the season with a 17-15 record after ending the season with seven wins in its last nine games. The Lancers were coming off a 14-9 loss to top-seeded and 10th-ranked UC Davis on Saturday, and the Aggies went on to win the WWPA championship final easily with a 14-5 victory over second-seeded and 11th-ranked UC San Diego on Sunday.
Despite the final score, Santa Clara led for most of the game after getting on the board first. CBU never trailed by more than a goal, though. The Lancers took their first lead (6-5) a minute-and-a-half into the third quarter after consecutive goals from Galgani and Bumgardner.
"The game was kind of like our season, a little struggle at first but we kept building momentum for a great finish," Rosa said.
The Broncos ended the third quarter on a 3-1, though, to take an 8-7 edge into the fourth quarter. The Lancers started the final frame on fire and scored three-straight goals, with McDonough tallying the first two and Britton adding the third.
PJ McDonough is Mr. Fourth Quarter, with a hat trick in this quarter alone.
"We were moving well and executing what we needed, so good things were happening," Rosa said. "We struggled a little in the first three quarters, but we were dynamite and outstanding in the fourth quarter."
Huge goal from Christian Britton and CBU leads by two with four minutes left!
It put the Lancers up 10-8 with four minutes left, but they were far from in the clear. Santa Clara scored on the next possession and answered McDonough's third goal of the quarter to make it a one-goal game with 2:27 to play.
A great drive and finish from Lowery and an assist from Kyle Christian capped the scoring for CBU.
That's the name of the game for Zach Lowery.
The Lancers got a big field block from Nick Johnson on the ensuing possession and were able to run a minute off the block after a shot from Kyle Christian was save out of bounds for a corner.
I mean, has there ever been a bigger field block?
"We calmed down in the fourth quarter, we have been there before. We definitely had the season to prepare us for a one-goal game in the fourth quarter," Rosa said. "We had the confidence, knowing we have been there before so there were no nerves. That was the loosest we've played in the fourth quarter."
Santa Clara earned an ejection with 39 seconds left, but the Broncos' shot was off the mark. It allowed CBU to call timeout and set up a special moment for its seniors, as Rosa subbed them out and greeted them for a hug, along with their teammates, to loud cheers from the Lancer fans.
"When you're hosting a conference championship, you hope your fans come out and they did not disappoint. They came out, rallied and gave us a lot of energy," Rosa said. "It is great seeing the alumni come out because the guys love seeing them, it bridges the gap and builds a connection. It was great to see them leading the charge on that."