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Mitchell Carpeter save
UC Davis Athletics
9
Biola BU (3-22)
10
Winner Concordia CUI (9-17)
Biola BU
(3-22)
9
Final
10
Concordia CUI
(9-17)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Biola BU 3 2 1 3 9
Concordia CUI 2 2 2 4 10

Game Recap: Men's Water Polo |

Eagles Almost Upset CUI

Biola loses a heartbreaker 10-9 to Concordia Irvine to finish 2021 season.

DAVIS, Calif. --- The goal all season long was to enter November a better team than showed up in August. With its steadily competitive effort at the Western Water Polo Association Men's Championship, Biola accomplished its mission.

The Eagles closed out their historic inaugural season with a match to remember on Saturday up in Davis. Biola faced a Concordia Irvine team that was seeded higher in the tournament (No. 7) and had beaten BU twice in the regular season (11-4; 11-7). 

This go-around was much closer than the rest as Biola led throughout, before CUI scored three in a row inside the final two minutes to steal a 10-9.

Biola did not score first, but it scored the most in the early stages of this one. Head Coach Rick Nordell's Eagles had a 4-0 scoring steak in the final two minutes of the first period and first three minutes of the second to surge out to a 5-2 lead in the match.

Nolan Rapp opened the scoring for BU to tie it at one following an early effort from Callin Chimilar of CUI. Then, Jonas Huckabay, Maxwell Osborn and Kenny Wulf scored before Rapp found his second to complete the long run and establish an early boost of confidence for BU with that 5-2 lead.

Unfortunately, the other Eagles went on a 4-0 run of their own to answer right back and get the lead back at 6-5 two minutes into the second half. Chimilar had another great match, scoring his second and third goals as part of the 4-0 stretch.

Spoiler alert - Concordia's Canadian junior, Chimilar, would finish the match with five goals and two assists, including the game-winning goal that came with 00:01 left in the fourth quarter.

Goals from Wulf and VInson would put Biola back in the driver's season at 7-6 from the 7:28 mark to the 4:53 mark in the fourth. Chimilar scored Concordia's seventh at 4:53 to knot the game up.

Maxwell Osborn was having none of that, though, taking one from seven meters out to put Biola back out ahead after the next offensive possession. Will Tibbetts extended the lead to 9-7 with 3:13 left on the clock and had BU dreaming of getting a win here, which would have the team double it's season win total with the postseason run.

Unfortunately, three Concordia Eagles found the back of the twine in the final three minutes, including one on a huge breakaway effort Biola would want back.

When the match was 9-9 it looked like Biola was going to take the 10-9 advantage as it had two quick-twitch opportunities at goal from just inside the two-meter. One was splashed away by CUI and the other deflected off the post to give the ball back to CUI with, as it turns out, just enough time to score a game-winner.

Biola would take one last-ditch shot as time expired, but it was no good and Concordia Irvine would end up claiming the narrow victory.

The rapid and crisp passing, strong defensive handling of the opponent's two-meter man and the ability to continue to battle back after taking and losing the lead were all signs of a much-improved Biola side in this one. And that's something the team can take with them into the long winter before getting back at it next fall.

The inaugural season comes to a rest with an eighth-place tournament finish, one spot higher than its seeding, and a 3-22 overall record. 

Kenny Wulf finishes as the team leader with 42 goals and 54 total points. Maxwell Osborn comes in second with 26 goals and a team-high 21 assists. Nolan Rapp ends with 47 steals and Luke Franklin finishes with 22 drawn exclusions while only being whistled for five of his own. Mitchell Carpenter ends his freshman campaign with 251 total saves, which is third in the WWPA. For his efforts in the three-game tournament (7 G, 1 A), Kenny Wulf earned landed on the all-tournament second team.
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