Pirates clamp down and tame Tigers, 17-8
COSTA MESA -- A strong second half on both sides of the pool helped the Orange Coast College men's water polo team pick up a 17-8 Orange Empire Conference win over visiting Riverside City College on Wednesday afternoon.
Taos Cadarette led the Pirates (4-5, 2-0 in OEC) with three goals, while Jake Davis, Scott Brush, Dillon Avila and Cesar Altamirano each added two goals. Single tallies were tossed in by Matt Schrout, Trent Hayes, Garret Glore, Josh Hayashi, Matt John and Bailey Harris.
In a back-and-forth matchup, the Pirates carried a slim 6-4 advantage into the third period when Coast took control of the contest.
Coast outscored the Tigers 8-2 in the third as Cadarette scored his three goals in that frame, while Avila added two.
While the offense was clicking, the OCC defense clamped down and forced five steals in the third period alone. When the Tigers did managed a shot on goal, sophomore GK Luis Martinez came up big. He finished the afternoon with 14 saves, including four or five from point-blank range.
After that period, the Pirates were never threatened the rest of the way as goals by Hayes, Brush and John closed things out.
The Pirates will return to action on Friday, Oct. 10 at the Riverside City College Invitational. OCC's next home match will be Wednesday, Oct. 22 against Saddleback, beginning at 3 p.m.
