Pirates go 3-1 at RCC Tournament

RIVERSIDE -- It was another successful weekend of action for the Orange Coast College men's water polo team as the Pirates competed at the Riverside City College Tournament and came up with three wins out of four matches.

The Pirates (14-6) -- winners of 10 of their past 12 contests -- opened things with a convincing 17-3 win over Grossmont. Coast scored 11 of the first 12 goals of the match and cruised from there. Caden Carpenter, Ryan O'Donovan and Brendan Bellavia each had three goals to lead the OCC offense, while in goal, the tandem of Roman Christenot and Dariush Kashani combined for six saves with only three goals allowed.

The level of play rose dramatically when the Pirates -- ranked No. 4 in the state in the most latest polls -- returned to the water and faced off with No. 6 Long Beach City College. Coast jumped out to an early 5-0 lead but the Vikings came back and with the help of a pair of fourth-quarter goals, rallied for an 11-10 win.

Carpenter, and Jacob Muller each had two goals for Coast, while Christenot was solid in goal with 14 saves. 

On Saturday, Coast was in another battle as the Pirates took on No. 5 Mt. San Antonio for the morning matchup. In a back-and-forth battle, a goal from Carmelo Bangs in the final minute of the fourth quarter proved to be the game-winner as OCC topped the Mounties, 13-12.

O'Donovan was OCC's goal-leader over Mt. SAC, notching five goals, while Carpenter added three goals and Bangs tossed in two. Christenot was again solid in goal with 14 big saves.

Coast ended the tournament with a 16-6 win over L.A. Valley for its 14th win of the 2023 season. Carpenter had the hot hand for the Pirates with five goals, while Bangs and Aiden Morris each added three. Christenot was not nearly as busy, but finished with five saves over the Monarchs. 

Coast will return to action on Wednesday as they head to top-ranked Golden West College to take on the rival Rustlers, beginning at 3 p.m.