LOS ANGELES — Alexander Zim scored four goals and Matt Weiser had three. 

But the Occidental College men's water polo team couldn't overcome a four-goal halftime deficit, losing 13-12 against La Verne at Taylor Pool on Wednesday.

Jared Hopely led the Leopards with four goals.

Josh Needleman made 14 saves in goal for Oxy.

La Verne outscored Oxy 6-2 in the second quarter, going into halftime with a 9-5 lead. The Tigers cut it to a two-goal lead headed into the fourth, but didn't have enough to complete the comeback late.

From the Coach: "I'm really proud of the way that our team played tonight," Oxy head coach Chris Lee said. "We stumbled in the second quarter, but from that point on the team fought really hard to tie it up at the end and just came up a little short. Our team is still learning how to play through msitakes and we showed resilience and character today."

Dominic Rodriguez and Matt Munet each had a pair of goals for the Tigers. 

Season Impact: Oxy falls to 2-16 and 0-5 in SCIAC. La Verne improves to 6-15 and 2-3.

Next Game: The Tigers return to action at Cal Lutheran on Saturday at 111 a.m.