Men's Water Polo: Long Beach falls 9-6 in state championship final

The Long Beach City College men's water polo team closed out the season with a tough 9-6 loss to Golden West College in the championship final of the 2011 California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) Water Polo State Championships on Saturday at Cerritos College. 

Long Beach jumped ahead with two early goals by sophomore Tristan Winterhalter and freshman Chase McColl, to take a 2-0 lead over Golden West, but Rustlers' freshman Bero Rusz answered with two straight goals to tie the game at 2-2.

Sophomore Eric Doyle's goal with 7:26 to go in the half put LBCC back in front at 3-2, but Rusz, State Tournament MVP, scored two more goals before the half to send Golden West into the break with a 4-3 lead over the Vikings.

Golden West broke the game open with four goals in the third quarter to take a commanding 8-4 lead into the final quarter.

The Rustlers took advantage of numerous LBCC defensive lapses, as the Golden West scored three goals on 6 on 5 advantages and were a perfect 3 for 3 on five-meter penalty shots.

"We had our opportunities and we didn't take advantage," said LBCC head coach Chris Oeding. "That was the difference in the game."

McColl led the Vikings with two goals in the loss while Winterhalter, sophomore Nemanja Jokanovic, freshman Zlatko Vlasic, and freshman Dor Apffel each scored once. Sophomore goalie Vince Ward posted seven saves.

Following the match, McColl and Jokanovic were named the the State Championships All-Tournament team.

Long Beach closes the season with a 27-4 overall record.

"Looking back, it was a good season," said Oeding. "It's tough to think about now, but we won a conference championship, finished second at the regionals and finished second at state. (Coach Dave) Kasa and I are both proud of our team and the effort they gave."