Men’s water polo
LBSU take split at SoCal Tourney
Long Beach State produced a 10th place finish at the SoCal Tournament in Los Angeles after going 2-2 in four weekend matches.
The 49ers wrapped up the tournament with a 10-9 loss to UC Irvine Sunday afternoon. Jeff Greenwood led the ‘Niners with four goals and Kevin vanHaaster added three of his own.
Earlier that morning, LBSU soundly defeated Princeton, 12-6, behind Greenwood’s four goals. Van Haaster and Aleksander Petrovic had two goals each, while four other 49ers contributed one apiece.
Fueled by a strong second half, the 49ers’ men’s water polo team edged the Bucknell Bison, 7-3, Saturday afternoon.
LBSU held a 2-1 lead going into the half, but outscored the Bison, 5-2, in the second half and did not allow a goal in the fourth period. Jordan Koeppen led the team with two goals, while five other ‘Niners also found the back of the net.
In Saturday’s morning match, the 49ers fell to UC San Diego, 8-7, to split the season series at two apiece. Jake Kinne and vanHaaster each had two goals, while Greenwood, Petrovic and Ash Blythen each had one.
LBSU (9-9, 0-1 MPSF) returns to the 49er Campus Pool Saturday to host No. 1 USC, winners of the SoCal Tourney, at noon.
Women’s tennis
‘Niners produce strong showing in Fullerton
The doubles combination of Deborah Armstrong and Julie Luzar took the Flight B consolation title at the Fullerton Invitational this past Sunday after their opponents were forced to withdraw.
The pair punched a ticket into the finals after fighting off New Mexico State’s Paulina Zuniger and Bianca Discordia, 8-2, in the semis.
In singles competition, Luzar was downed in the Flight B final — the second toughest draw — against Cal Poly’s Maria Malec 2-6, 6-3, 6-3. Luzar advanced to the final after defeating UC Irvine’s Heide Kaloi 3-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the semifinals and dispatching CS Northridge’s Nina Joworowski 6-4, 7-5 in the quarterfinal.
The doubles team of Rachel Manasse and Jessica Weeks fell in the Back Draw Flight A finals to Cal Poly’s Brittany Blalock and Steffi Wong. They advanced to the finals after beating Loyola Marymount’s Tina Razlovnik and Shauna Morgan, 8-5, in the semis.
Weeks also competed in the Flight B singles draw, falling 6-4, 6-1 to UC Irvine’s Ali Borowicz.
In her singles draw, Armstrong fell in the Flight A semifinal — the toughest draw — to UCLA’s Alexandra Walters 5-7, 6-4, 6-1.
The 49ers have one more fall tournament remaining when they travel to San Diego for the ITA Regional Championships from Oct. 23 through Oct. 27.