LOS ANGELES – The Broncos scored first, but the Lions had the goals flowing as they defeated Santa Clara in the third-place match of the WWPA water polo tournament. The Lions won 14-6 at the Burns Aquatic Center. 

 

Joseph Cavazos and Blazo Mitrovic scored four goals apiece to lead the Lions. David Carrasco chipped in a pair of goals as well as five assists. 

 

The Broncos scored on their first possession but would not be able to hold it as the Lions roared ahead with just under seven minutes to play in the first period on Cavazos's first goal and would not relinquish that lead for the remainder of the match. 

 

After a Mitrovic goal at the 1:35 mark of the first period, the Lions would hold a 5-2 edge. That lead would continue to grow as the match progressed. 

 

The Broncos trimmed the lead to 5-4. But a Cavazos goal and then two from Carrasco marked an 8-4 halftime tally. 

 

The Broncos would score on the first possession of the second half, but the Lions countered with two more in the third quarter and two to start the fourth to make it four straight and put the game out of reach. 

 

Dimitriy Kobets would score with 1:17 left before Mitrovic added an exclamation point by scoring with 20 seconds remaining to mark the final score. 

 

The other LMU scorers were Max Walsworth, Tyler Harvey, and Jonny Rimlinger. 

 

Stelios Dalmaras added 15 saves in net for the victory.  

 

Carrasco, the WWPA Player of the Year, was called for his third and final exclusion of the match with just under a minute to play and received a standing ovation from the Lion faithful.  

 

"That was a nice moment," said the senior from Spain.  

 

Carrasco and Mitrovic were named to the all-tournament first team with Cavazos being named to the second team.  

 

The Lions wrap up the 2022 season with a 17-9 record, 7-1 in the WWPA. They finished the regular season second in the conference to UC Davis and are the victors of the third-place match. The Aggies defeated the UCSD Tritons in the championship match. 

 

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