No. 18 Air Force Drops Pair of WWPA Contests
11/5/2005 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Los Angeles, Calif. -- Hurt by poor execution on its extra-man opportunities, the 18th-ranked Air Force water polo team lost a pair of conference games Saturday, falling to 11th-ranked Loyola Marymount, 10-5, and Redlands, 5-4 at the Burns Recreation and Aquatic Center on the campus of LMU. With the losses, the Falcons fall to 9-13 overall, 7-7 in the WWPA.
In the first game against Loyola Marymount, Air Force found itself down 3-0 by the end of the first quarter and 4-1 at the half. In the third period, the Falcons fell even further behind as the Lions were able to extend their advantage to 7-2. Air Force began to make its move in the final period, but still fell short, dropping the 10-5 decision.
Junior Matt LeBlanc (Los Angeles, Calif.) led the Falcons' offense with two scores against LMU, while Justin Berry (So., Windermere, Fla.), Jeff Donaldson (Sr., Riverside, Calif.) and Joey Brewer (Fr., Clovis, Calif.) each added a goal. Junior goalkeeper Denver Saunders (Roseville, Calif.) had a solid performance for the Falcons, notching nine saves in the contest.
Air Force faced Redlands in the second game of the day, in yet another close contest between the two teams. The Bulldogs took the early lead, holding a 2-1 advantage at the end of the first period and a 3-2 edge by halftime. The Falcons found themselves with a 5-2 deficit at the conclusion of the third period before making yet another late comeback.
After a fourth-quarter score by Donaldson brought Air Force within two goals, Berry found the net with 4:52 remaining on the clock. Unfortunately, it would be the last goal of the game, as the Falcons could not complete its rally, falling 5-4. It marks the fourth-straight contest between the two teams decided by a single point.
Also scoring for Air Force against the Bulldogs were LeBlanc and junior Danny Kimmich (La Jolla, Calif.), while Kimmich also added two assists. In addition, Saunders notched seven saves in goal versus Redlands.
As has been the case throughout the season, the Falcons were hurt most by an inability to capitalize on its extra-man opportunities. Air Force was 0-for-6 on the man-up advantage against LMU, while the Lions scored on all four of their 6-on-5 chances. Against Redlands, the numbers were equally discouraging, as the Falcons were 0-4 while allowing the Bulldogs to score on two of their three extra-man opportunities.
Air Force concludes the regular season with a pair of WWPA contests tomorrow. The Falcons will travel to La Verne for a 9:00 a.m. (PT) game, followed by a 12:30 p.m. contest at Claremont.
No. 11 Loyola Marymount 10, No. 18 Air Force 5
Air Force 0 1 1 3 5
LMU 2 2 3 3 10
AF Scoring: LeBlanc 2, Berry, Brewer, Donaldson
LMU Scoring: Rex-Kiss 3, Easton 2, Marshall, Hummel, Reynolds, McShane, Milovic
Redlands 5, No. 18 Air Force 4
Air Force 1 1 0 2 4
Redlands 2 1 2 0 5
AF Scoring: Kimmich, LeBlanc, Donaldson, Berry
Redlands Scoring: Avedissian, Calpin, Mills, Rova, Hall
In the first game against Loyola Marymount, Air Force found itself down 3-0 by the end of the first quarter and 4-1 at the half. In the third period, the Falcons fell even further behind as the Lions were able to extend their advantage to 7-2. Air Force began to make its move in the final period, but still fell short, dropping the 10-5 decision.
Junior Matt LeBlanc (Los Angeles, Calif.) led the Falcons' offense with two scores against LMU, while Justin Berry (So., Windermere, Fla.), Jeff Donaldson (Sr., Riverside, Calif.) and Joey Brewer (Fr., Clovis, Calif.) each added a goal. Junior goalkeeper Denver Saunders (Roseville, Calif.) had a solid performance for the Falcons, notching nine saves in the contest.
Air Force faced Redlands in the second game of the day, in yet another close contest between the two teams. The Bulldogs took the early lead, holding a 2-1 advantage at the end of the first period and a 3-2 edge by halftime. The Falcons found themselves with a 5-2 deficit at the conclusion of the third period before making yet another late comeback.
After a fourth-quarter score by Donaldson brought Air Force within two goals, Berry found the net with 4:52 remaining on the clock. Unfortunately, it would be the last goal of the game, as the Falcons could not complete its rally, falling 5-4. It marks the fourth-straight contest between the two teams decided by a single point.
Also scoring for Air Force against the Bulldogs were LeBlanc and junior Danny Kimmich (La Jolla, Calif.), while Kimmich also added two assists. In addition, Saunders notched seven saves in goal versus Redlands.
As has been the case throughout the season, the Falcons were hurt most by an inability to capitalize on its extra-man opportunities. Air Force was 0-for-6 on the man-up advantage against LMU, while the Lions scored on all four of their 6-on-5 chances. Against Redlands, the numbers were equally discouraging, as the Falcons were 0-4 while allowing the Bulldogs to score on two of their three extra-man opportunities.
Air Force concludes the regular season with a pair of WWPA contests tomorrow. The Falcons will travel to La Verne for a 9:00 a.m. (PT) game, followed by a 12:30 p.m. contest at Claremont.
No. 11 Loyola Marymount 10, No. 18 Air Force 5
Air Force 0 1 1 3 5
LMU 2 2 3 3 10
AF Scoring: LeBlanc 2, Berry, Brewer, Donaldson
LMU Scoring: Rex-Kiss 3, Easton 2, Marshall, Hummel, Reynolds, McShane, Milovic
Redlands 5, No. 18 Air Force 4
Air Force 1 1 0 2 4
Redlands 2 1 2 0 5
AF Scoring: Kimmich, LeBlanc, Donaldson, Berry
Redlands Scoring: Avedissian, Calpin, Mills, Rova, Hall
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