The Ventura College men's water polo team earned their first victory of the young season Saturday, an 18-8 decision over Southwestern College at the 45th Annual Mt. SAC Tournament. Sophomore Tanner Islander and freshman Austin Brunk continue to standout for the Pirates (1-7) offensively with positive contributions from Sophomore Frank Lopez, freshmen Jake Peters and Riley Doucette, and others.
Ventura 12, Mt. SAC 17
The Pirates opened the tournament taking on the hosts in Walnut. The Pirates kept things close in the first quarter, trailing 5-4 at the quarter break, before the Mounties opened things up in the second period. Brunk led the way with four goals, two assists, two steals and three drawn exclusions while Islander netted three scores. Peters added a pair of goals and Doucette handed out three assists. Evan Hanely recorded 10 saves in goal.
Ventura 5, Fullerton 9
In Friday's nightcap, VC was within 6-4 entering the fourth period before the Hornets pulled away. Brunk, Peters, Doucette, Lopez and Joesph MacDonald all scored one goal for the Pirates.
Ventura 18, Southwestern 8
Ventura earned head coach Jorge Perez's first victory with the Pirates with a breakout performance against the Jaguars. VC scored four unanswered goals to take a 5-1 lead at the end of one quarter, and led 8-2 at halftime. The Pirates stretched the advantage to 15-6 at the end of three periods before claiming the 10-goal victory. Islander was unstoppable with seven goals while Peters and Zander Galvin recorded three scores each. Peters also handed out a pair of assists and Lopez had four helpers. Brandon Bence scored twice and Hanely had three assists and two steals while turning back 10 Southwestern shots. Doucette had a goal with four assists while Brunk scored once with two assists.
Ventura 9, Orange Coast 22
Ventura closed the tournament with a difficult loss to Orange Coast. VC was down 4-0 and the end of the first quarter and never recovered against OCC. Islander recorded two goals while Lopez had a goal and three steals. Brunk, Peters, Galvin, Doucette and Bence all score one goal each.
The Pirates will make their home debut on Saturday Sept. 22 against the VC alumni. The match is slated to begin at 9:30 am at the Ventura Aquatic Center.