Led by 11 goals from David Carrasco and Daniel Roth, Loyola Marymount University’s men’s water polo team began conference play in dominating style, trouncing Fresno Pacific 18-10 on Sept. 21 at Fresno.
The Lions (2-5, 1-0 WWPA) never trailed, leading by as many as 10 goals, with Roth, Carrasco, and Blazo Mitrovic setting the tone with goals in the first three minutes for a 3-0 first quarter lead, and Roth tallying twice more before the period ended.
Two more Roth goals and two by Carrasco made the score 9-2, and Alexandros Athymarytis made it 10-5 with a goal before halftime. Goals by Athymaritis and Carrasco opened the second half before FPU got one back. Servite HS alum Jack Dunbar scored and Loyola HS grad Carrasco added two more for a 15-6 lead, and two by Mitrovic gave LMU a double-digit advantage (17-7) with 1:41 remaining in the third.
Luke Chandler added the final Lions’ goal in the fourth quarter. Carrasco finished the game with six goals and four assists for 10 points, while Roth and Mitrovic each contributed six points and Zach Zemliak and Jon Lien combined for 12 saves in the LMU net.
On Sept. 25, the Lions travel to UC San Diego in a non-conference battle. LMU then participates in the SoCal Invitational Sept. 27-29, co-hosted by the Lions and UCLA, with Princeton and Air Force joining 14 California-based schools in the 16-team event.
