Score: UC Davis 12, Long Beach State 11
Location: Irvine, Calif. (Anteater Aquatics Complex)
Record: UC Davis 15-12, Long Beach State 17-9
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The short story: A tournament MVP performance from
Baxter Chelsom gave UC Davis men's water polo a victory in the Big West Finals over Long Beach State on Sunday, Nov. 23. The Aggies advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022, the eighth appearance in program history.
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE
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HOW IT HAPPENED
- Two minutes into the game, Thomas Kiesling and Thomas Marr went back-to-back to open things up for the Aggies.
- After a pair of responses from the Beach, Oriol Viñas found the back of the net before another from Kiesling gave Davis a 4-2 lead after the first.
- Colin Nicholls and Will Stryker matched two Long Beach State goals in the second period, with Aggie defense keeping the Beach out of the net and giving the team a 6-4 lead into halftime.
- Both clubs continued to battle back and forth into the third quarter, with Viñas, Oleg Shatskikh, and Kiesling all responding to goals from the opposition to keep a slim two-goal lead, 9-7, heading into the final period.
- After a goal from Kapragkos put the Beach within one, William Fosselman took a strike on the advantage to give Davis a 10-8 lead.
- Two minutes later, Shatskikh's second extended the lead to three for the Aggies.
- Long Beach got one back, but the dagger came from Andrew Hitchcock, whose turnaround goal put his team up three with only two minutes left.
- The Beach took two quick strikes into the back of the net, threatening to tie the game with only a minute remaining.
- But Chelsom remained stout in net, racking up eight saves to become Big West Tournament MVP and help lead his team to a 12-11 victory.
UP NEXT: UC Davis now turns their attention to the NCAA Tournament selection show, which will be broadcast live on Monday, Nov. 24, at 9:00 a.m. PT. The 2025 Men's Water Polo Championship will take place Dec. 5-7 at Avery Aquatics Center in Stanford.
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