GENEVA, Ohio — While yesterday's quarterfinal matchup was a tense, tenuous effort from start-to-finish, Saturday's semifinal battle was relatively smooth sailing for Biola Men's Water Polo.
The Eagles dispatched the No. 1 seed from the east with relative ease, beating the host school Gannon Golden Knights by a final score of 11-9 to clinch a spot in Sunday's championship match.
"Sometimes when you are chasing, it is a little bit easier than being chased," said Head Coach Jens Cole. "We took the mindset of being the underdog. Even if we were up by two or three, we wanted to play like we were down by two or three and put the pedal to the metal."
Biola held Gannon to just one goal in the first quarter and scored four of the first five goals of the game to snag a commanding lead. With that lead in hand, Head Coach Jens Cole's boys never looked back.
Joshua Dachenhausen once again made a huge difference in the game, coming up with 11 saves for the second day in a row.
"A lot of team defense and help defense was critical," said Joshua Dachenhausen. "We were talking about how Adam [Lavoy] is a crucial part of it. We will need this team defense again tomorrow."
The Eagles never once allowed the host school to tie the game, let alone grab a lead in a dominant effort. Biola scored 11 goals on 28 shots and held the opposition to just nine goals on 30 shots with a fantastic defensive showing.
"We lean on doing the small stuff on defense. We talk about being selfless on defense," said Cole. "You may not get the glory in the moment, but it all adds to the win…It was great team defense from the jump."
Biola did commit 12 exclusions in the contest, but allowed just three power-play goals to the other side, helping keep the Golden Knights at arm's length.
Gannon did manage to make it a one-goal game with back-to-back scores late in the fourth quarter, but a goal from Isaac Demski on Biola's final offensive possession sealed the deal. It was a sweet score for Demski who is no stranger to Gannon, being a transplant to Biola from WWPA east coast member, McKendree. Demski scored the first goal of the game and the last goal of the game in a 4-point effort for his Eagles.
"Gannon is a very physical and talented team. They came out and gave us a good game," said
Caleb Hernandez. "Our coaches put us in a good position to come out on top in that game. It was a barn burner but all these games are. We are pretty excited to be back in the finals this year."
Other top point-earners for Biola include senior leadership as Adam Lavoy, Nick Murray and Caleb Hernandez all finished with three points a piece.
Biola's win allowed the team to improve it's all-time WWPA tournament record to 9-4. The Eagles will seek a second championship in the last three years on Sunday at 10 a.m. PT.
"Our guys stayed confident and sealed the deal there in the end," said Cole. "Both teams are really well coached. They are good sides with a good connection and bond. They are very different teams and we are excited to see who comes out victorious and hope to give them a good game."
Biola will face the Concordia in the final. It will be a rematch of the 2023 final and the third time season that BU and CUI have met.
"It is exciting going back to the final," said Hernandez. "This year we have a big age gap on our team. We have a lot of hungry young guys on our team and we can use that to our advantage going into the final. Our freshman class has done well for us this year and I think they're going to keep stepping it up."
