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Pepperdine University Athletics

MWP Team
James Hanson
14
Winner San Jose State SJSU (17-6, 4-2)
10
Pepperdine PEP (21-8, 5-1)
Winner
San Jose State SJSU
(17-6, 4-2)
14
Final
10
Pepperdine PEP
(21-8, 5-1)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
San Jose State SJSU 4 4 2 4 14
Pepperdine PEP 3 2 3 2 10

Game Recap: Men's Water Polo | | By Athletic Communications

Waves WCC Tournament Run Comes to an End

STOCKTON, Calif. – The #8 Pepperdine men's water polo team's West Coast Conference Tournament run came to an end with a 14-10 loss to #13 San Jose State at Eberhardt Aquatics Center on Saturday.
 
Spartans (17-6) outshot the Waves (21-8) .368 to .263, while holding Pepperdine scoreless on 12 of their 13 power play opportunities.
 
BIG WAVES
  • Junior attacker Adam Csapo (Budapest, Hungary) had a hat-trick, his 14th of the year.
  • Junior attacker Sandor Gal (Budapest, Hungary) posted two goals and one assist.
  • Fifth year attacker Christian Hosea (San Clemente, Calif.) tallied a pair of goals and drawn exclusions.
  • Freshman attacker Erik Ionescu (Budapest, Hungary) collected two goals and one assist.
  • Junior utility Milo Joseph (Malibu, Calif.) drew seven exclusions. 
RECAP
 
After San Jose State scored on the opening possession, Hosea tied the game thanks to a beautiful pass from Ionescu. Hosea and Gal then converted two penalty goals after Milo Joseph (Malibu, Calif.) drew both fouls to complete the Waves three-goal run and give them an early 3-1 advantage. The Spartans then scored two 6-on-5 goals in addition to a penalty goal to regain their advantage, 4-3. Both teams went scoreless in the final two minutes of the first frame as San Jose State held a one-goal advantage going into the second period.
 
The Spartans opened the second quarter with two more scores to cap off their five-goal run and make it a 6-3 game with 5:26 left in the half. Joseph then drew his third penalty foul of the game before Csapo converted the opportunity to bring the Waves back within two. Csapo found the back of the cage for a second time, but the Spartans were able to score two of the last three goals in the half to take an 8-5 lead into the break.
 
Although Clay Kaneko (Huntington Beach, Calif.) scored in the first few minutes of the second half, San Jose State continued to build their lead with two goals in the same time frame. Csapo and Ionescu scored back-to-back goals to end the quarter to bring the Waves back within two with eight minutes to go, 10-8.
 
The Spartans increased their lead back to three with the first goal of the final period, but Ionescu found the back of the cage once more to bring Pepperdine within two with 5:07 left to play. After both teams went scoreless for a few possessions, San Jose State found the back of the net to make it a 12-9 game with 2:20 left in the game. Gal scored in the final minute, but San Jose State would hold on to win the contest 14-10.
 
SJSU 4-4-2-4 — 14
PEPP 3-2-3-2 — 10
 
Pepperdine goals: Adam Csapo 3, Sandor Gal 2, Christian Hosea 2, Erik Ionescu 2, Clay Kaneko 1.
 
UP NEXT
 
This ends Pepperdine's WCC Tournament run. The NCAA Tournament selection show will be held on November 25.
 
FOLLOW
 
Follow @PeppWaterPolo on X for updates and check out PepperdineWaves.com and Facebook (/PeppWaterPolo) for releases and more information. Find the Waves on Instagram @peppwaterpolo.
 
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