The VC men's water polo team traveled to Chula Vista on Friday and Saturday to play in the 1st Annual Dia De Los Muertos Tournament at Southwestern College. The Pirates went 1-3 over the two days, including a 19-14 win over Fullerton on Friday and a close setback against Cypress Saturday morning. Austin Brunk had 14 goals, five assists, 13 field blocks and seven steals over the weekend while Ryan Reardon netted 15 goals with nine steals in the four games for Ventura (10-14, 2-2).
Ventura 3, Orange Coast 20
VC opened the weekend with a rough outing against Orange Coast, the state's No. 6-ranked team. Reardon had a pair of goals in the game and Brandon Berce had a goal and a field block. Brunk pulled in four steals defensively and Jake Peters and Gabriel Ibarra each handed out an assist.
Ventura 19, Fullerton 14
The Pirates turned things around in Friday's nightcap with the victory over the Hornets. Ventura jumped out to a 6-3 lead at the end of the first period and maintained a 10-8 advantage at halftime. Reardon scored a season-high nine goals in the game with two assists and four steals. Brunk had six scores with a pair of helpers. Peters netted two goals with two thefts and Zach Ziegler also found the back of the cage once with three assists and a steal. Daniel Mclean had five saves, two blocks and four steals in goal for the Pirates.
Ventura 12, Cypress 14
Ventura fell behind 4-0 in the first quarter and trailed 9-3 at the half. VC attempted to stage a comeback in the third period but the deficit was too much in the loss. Peters had three goals, three assists and five steals to lead the way and Reardon also recorded three goals with four thefts. Brunk had two scores while Berce and Ziegler also had one goal each. Carlos Lugo had a score with two helpers in the game.
Ventura 9, Saddleback 16
VC trailed 6-4 at the end of the first period, and stayed with the Gauchos through three quarters, trailing 10-8. Saddleback pulled away in the final stanza to defeat the Pirates. Brunk had a solid game with six goals with three assists and eight field blocks. Ibarra scored twice and Reardon recorded one goal. Dru Coronado handed out three assists in the game while Mclean had four saves and four blocks in the cage.
Ventura will receive the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Western State Conference Tournament. They will play No. 2 Cuesta in the conference semifinals on Friday Nov. 8 at LA Valley.