The No. 8 Long Beach State men’s water polo team fell to top-ranked Pacific to close out regular season play on Saturday and will now look to reset for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament.
The ‘Niners traveled to Stockton to take on the nation’s top team in the Tigers, who rose to the No. 1 spot in the rankings in part because of a win over Southern California earlier in the season.
Sophomore Pavo Ljepopio led the 49ers in the match with 18 saves, keeping the No.1 ranked Tigers on their heels for the entire match.
The first quarter of play saw Pacific striking first and then extending its lead to 4-2 at the end of the quarter.
In the second quarter, Pacific went on a 3-0 run, creating a nice cushion from LBSU momentarily.
Then, junior Devin Mefford added his second goal of the game just before half to bring LBSU within four of Pacific heading into halftime.
The second half saw LBSU gaining stride right off the bat with two goals from junior Milos Vrsic and Mefford adding another goal to reach a team-high of three for the match.
The ‘Niners outscored the Tigers 4-2 in the second half, but unfortunately for LBSU, the damage had already been done.
In the end, Pacific squeaked out a 9-7 win in the season finale.
LBSU will now shift its focus toward postseason play. They’ll return home for just a short few days to prepare before heading back up to Stockton for the MPSF Tournament.
The ‘Niners are no strangers to Stockton. Every summer they spend a week practicing at Pacific, and they have a strong comfort-level in the Tigers’ pool.
“It’s like another home pool for us,” junior Devin Mefford said.
The MPSF tournament includes the top eight teams from the conference. The winner of the tournament gets an automatic spot in the final NCAA tournament held in December, which crowns the national champion.
Long Beach State will be coming into the MPSF tournament as the No. 7 seed and will be a rematch with Stanford in the first round.
The ‘Niners will undoubtedly be facing an uphill battle as they come into the MPSF tournament as an underdog. However, postseason play is about leaving all records and previous matches in the past and playing in the present.
“Everybody’s got something to be scared of, but we really don’t,” Mefford said.
In the culminating weekend of LBSU’s 2013 season, the ‘Niners will strive to match their fifth place finish from last year, and surprise those who may doubt the 49ers’ legitimacy.
“We’re prepped and ready. This is as honed as we’ll ever be,” Mefford said.
The MPSF tournament will be held from Friday to Sunday. Game times are still to be determined.
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