Sept. 22, 2001

Los Angeles, CA., -- The 11th ranked LMU men's water polo team split their doubleheader Saturday at LMU's Burns Aquatics Complex with a loss to No. 3 UCLA 9-4, then came back strong to win 17-2 over Occidental.

In the first game, the Lions and Bruins held a steady first period, each team scoring two goals. Kris Barr and Stephen Lipinski each netted one goal each for the Lions, and Jon Puffer and Matt Flesher each scored for the Bruins.

The Bruins pulled away in the second period, out-scoring the Lions 4-1. Two goals came from Albert Garcia, and single goals by Jeff Pflueger, and Flesher for his second. Scott Smith was the only Lion to net a goal in the second period. UCLA took the 6-3 lead into the halftime.

The Lions were unable to stop the Bruins in the second half of the game. Tamas Szego was the only Lion to score in the second half with his goal in the last minute of the third period. The Lions also fell to a disadvantage in the third period as they lost their leading scorer, Lipinski, who fouled out of the game. Kevin Paulsen defended the net for the Lions, collecting nine saves in the game, and allowing nine shots.

LMU came out strong in the second game when they defeated the Occidental Tigers 17-2. The Lions scored an impressive 10 goals in the first half, while Paulsen defended the goal well, allowing not a single shot going into halftime.

Szego and Kris Barr led the Lions at the half with their three goals each. Lipinski scored his only goal of the game in the second period, Trevor Wagner scored a single goal, and Kyle Witt went into the halftime with his two goals.

The second half started with many of the reserve players of the team. Patrick Treanor defended the goal, collecting his three saves of the game, and allowing only two goals from Occidental. Patrick Reilly, Andrew Aukland and Sean Wimer each scored two goals in the game, and P.J. Rosenquist was also successful with his single goal.

Jebb Baker and Erik Koland were the only two Tigers able to score on the Lions defense.

Next, the Lions host Pepperdine on Wednesday at the Burn's Aquatics Complex. That game is scheduled to start at 3:00 P.M..