Men's Water Polo Defeats Division I Cal Poly, West Valley in Cuesta Tournament

The Riverside City College men's water polo team traveled to San Luis Obispo, CA to participate in the 2019 Cuesta Tournament over the weekend. After dropping their opening two games by a significant margin on Friday, the Tigers rebounded with a pair of one-score victories coming against NCAA Division I Cal Poly and West Valley.

The Tigers began the day with a tough competitor in the Cal Poly Mustangs. Riverside started slow as the Mustangs jumped to an early one-score lead. They continued on to blank the Tigers in the second period with Riverside trailing 4-1.

Despite the slow start, Riverside exploded four goals in the third period. Freshman Fülöp Hegyi got the ball rolling with a netter, backed by a pair of scores from sophomore Kenny Wulf. Sophomore Brochton Troutman finished the period with a score to bring the Tigers within one.

Riverside continued to challenge Cal Poly and did so successfully by halting them to a lone score in the fourth while Riverside netted three goals. Troutman sparked the offense with a goal, while Wulf sealed the deal with two scores leading to an 8-7 win.

Wulf was the engine of the offense with four goals and an assist. He also pocketed a steal and drew two ejections.

Troutman had a strong showing with two late-game netters, while freshman Vincenzo Inguanta drew two ejections, snagged two steals and score the first goal of the game.

Sophomore goalkeeper Leonardo Monges was a menace between the pipes as seen in nine saves and a game-high five assists. He picked up his third win of the season.

The Tigers continued on to play West Valley for the fourth and final game of the tournament. The Tigers reached their third-highest point total with a 12-11 victory.

Seven different players scored a goal, but Inguanta was the main contributor as seen in four goals.  Three of his four scores came in the final four minutes of the contest with his third goal acting as the go-ahead netter.

Wulf was a beast on both ends of the pool by recording a game-high four steals and three drawn ejections. He continued his hot offensive play by humming home three scores. He added an assist as well.

Sophomore Ethan Saenz dished out three assists and copped a steal, while Troutman scored a goal and tallied two assists.

Monges earned his fourth win of the day and matching his career-high saves mark at 16. He also recorded an assist and a steal.

Riverside (3-5, 1-0 OEC) will return to conference play as they host Orange Coast on Wednesday, October 2 at 3 p.m. Watch the live stream on Riverside Athletics YouTube.