ORANGE – The Occidental College men's water polo team ended the 2013 season with a 14-12 victory against No. 9 La Verne in the seventh place match of the SCIAC Championship Tournament.
The tournament finale against La Verne was a back-and-forth battle that would see five different lead changes in the first half before Oxy eventually pulled away.
Oxy's biggest lead of the game didn't come until the opening possession of the fourth quarter when Samuel Akiyama hit from the outside to make it 13-9. The junior finished with four goals in the game.
Once again La Verne mounted a comeback, scoring on their next two possessions to cut the Oxy lead to two. A few minutes later, Jack Stabenfeldt scored his game-high sixth goal to put Oxy back up by three, but the Leopards refused to go quietly.
La Verne chopped the lead back down to two with a goal after a timeout and an ensuing steal by the Leopards led to an exclusion and power play opportunity.
However, with senior Patrick Fish in goal, the Tigers were in good hands. After turning back the Leopard power play attempt, the co-captain made a brilliant block on a penalty shot to preserve the team's win.
The Tigers' man-down defense was stellar throughout the tournament and in the final game in particular as they held the Leopards to just five goals on 14 power plays.
Head coach Larry Zubrin was pleased with how well his team stayed focused and finished strong.
"We had three starters fouled out by the third quarter but rather than worry about what wasn't working the guys kept their cool and focused on what was working," Zubrin said. "Our 5-on-6 defense has been great all year and today it saved us. It was a perfect example of how team work can save you when you're down."
In the tournament's first three games, the Tigers beat Caltech, and then dropped the next two games against No. 1 Whittier and No. 3 Chapman.
The win ends the Tigers season with a seventh place finish in the conference standings. It's the team's highest finish in the SCIAC since 2010.
"The resiliency of this team truly amazes me," Zubrin added. "We had a challenging year, but the guys never gave up and never lost hope. Winning a championship is always a great thing and I tip my hat to the SCIAC champion, but these guys got something more than a trophy could ever give them.
"They learned about perseverance, trust, and team work."
