USAF ACADEMY, Colo. — The No. 17 Santa Clara men's water polo team led early and mounted a late push Friday, but third-seeded and No. 8 Pepperdine repeatedly countered and held on for a 20-17 win in the first round of the West Coast Conference Tournament at Air Force's Cadet Natatorium.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Broncos (9-14) jumped out to a 4-2 lead 90 seconds into the second period, fueled by sharp early defense. Pepperdine (17-10) eventually settled in and answered with an 8-2 run over the next six minutes to take a 10-6 halftime advantage.
   
• The Waves maintained a four-goal cushion at 16-12 with 3:30 remaining. Santa Clara rallied with a 4-2 stretch featuring goals from Thomas Wisdom, Reese Jenican, and two from Riccardo De Simon — including a steal and breakaway finish that cut the deficit to 18-16 with 90 seconds left.
   
• Pepperdine sealed the result in the closing moments, stopping a point-blank attempt from Luke Baird and scoring into an empty cage, then repeating the sequence after Jason Alietti's 7-on-6 shot hit the post. True freshman Beck Early, who had two assists and a goal, tallied the Broncos' final score with 10 seconds to go.
   
• Both defenses were tight early, keeping the game scoreless for the first four minutes. Henry Engs broke through with an outside strike for a 1-0 lead, and Jenican added his first goal just before the end of the opening quarter, tying it 2-2 on an assist from Early.
   
• De Simon matched the game high with five goals, finishing one shy of his career best. Imme van der Schaaf set a new WCC Tournament record with five assists and added a goal for a six-point outing. Jenican scored three times, and Charlie Engs added two. Cade Anderton led Pepperdine with five goals, and Max Smirnov recorded 13 saves for the Waves.