Sept. 11, 2004

LaVERNE, Calif. - The Santa Clara men's water polo team faced another tough day of competition as it opened the Inland Empire Tournament against two ranked opponents. In the first match of the day, the Broncos fell to fifth-ranked Pepperdine, 16-6. In the afternoon match, the Broncos were edged by 9th-ranked UC San Diego, 10-3.

"These first four matches of the season have been really good experiences for us," said head coach Keith Wilbur. "We will grow from each of these matches. Tomorrow will be an opportunity for this team to get some wins."

Six different Broncos found the back of the net in the morning duel against the Waves. Thomas Kelly, Chris Parolin, Kenny Flanagan-De la Hoz, Kevin Starry, Mark Perlite and Patrick Noack each scored in the match. Starry and Flanagan-De la Hoz anchored the Bronco defense as they earned three steals and three ejections, respectively. Two-meter player Grant Allison also played solid defense with two more earned ejections.

Against the Tritons, freshman Charlie Moore recorded his first multiple goal match with two goals in the contest. Starry added the final Bronco goal. Goalkeeper Peter Moore posted 10 saves in the cage and Allison added three more earned ejections to highlight the Broncos defense.

Santa Clara will finish play in the Inland Empire Tournament tomorrow when it plays Chapman and the host, University of Redlands in Redlands, Calif.