DAVIS, Calif. -- Michael Plastino finished four goals and three other Aggies finished with hat tricks on the day as the No. 11-ranked and top-seeded UC Davis men's water polo team opened play at the 2021 Western Water Polo Association Tournament play with a commanding 21-5 victory over ninth-seeded Biola on Friday afternoon at Schaal Aquatics Center.

The Aggies moved to 16-8 overall on the year and advance to face fourth-seeded and No. 15-ranked Loyola Marymount in Saturday's second semifinal at 11 a.m. It will be the second meeting of the season between the two programs after UC Davis edged the Lions, 13-12, at home back on Nov. 4 that clinched the tournament's top seed for the Aggies.

Plastino's four goals tied his career high originally set against Mount St. Mary's on Sept. 4 and matched against Air Force on Oct. 22. Logan Anderson, Will Nomura, and Nir Gross, all chipped in hat tricks on the day for UC Davis as 10 different players found of the back of the net on the day.

Four different Aggies finished with a pair of assists, while Ben Fleming swiped four steals on the day, leading the team to a total of 18 for the match.

Overall, UC Davis shot better than 51 percent for the match and limited the Eagles to just 22 percent for the contest, holding a 41-23 advantage in the shot column. 

The Aggies jumped out quickly, scoring the first six goals of the contest before Biola was able to break-up the shutout with the first goal of the second quarter. UC Davis then exploded for another lengthy run, this one a 5-0 burst, and outscored the Eagles in the second quarter en route to a 14-2 lead at the break.

UC Davis did not let up in the second half, scoring the first four goals before a back-and-forth finish.

A complete run-down of Friday's matches, as well as match-ups for day two of the tournament are available online at https://ucdavisaggies.com/sports/2021/10/21/2021-WWPA-Championship.aspx. 

A reminder to fans attending Saturday's matches: parking will not be available in Lot 56 directly behind the Schaal Aquatics Center due to the Causeway Classic football game at nearby UC Davis Health Stadium. Directions to alternate parking lots for Saturday's matches is available at the tournament website above.
 

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