Cypress Water Polo Tournament : Golden West Gets Back at Long Beach With 9-8 Win in Championship Game

Long Beach City College hadn’t had much trouble defeating Golden West in water polo this season. That is, until Saturday, when Golden West got some revenge by knocking off the top-ranked Vikings, 9-8, in the final of the Cypress College tournament.

Long Beach (16-1), the top-ranked team in Southern California, had defeated Golden West in three meetings this year, but with a strong defensive showing, the third-ranked Rustlers were able to capture the title for the second straight year.

Golden West goalie Tim Bogdanovich stopped eight shots, and center Craig Douglas scored three goals to lead the offense. Douglas’ goal at the start of the fourth period proved to be the winner. Bruce Fike, Jeff Wines, Brian Boyer, David Budman, Arne Van Dyke and Wade Womack also scored for Golden West.

“It was nice to beat Long Beach for a change,” said Rustler Coach Ken Hamdorf. “This is an important step for our team, but more important games are coming up, and this tournament helps us get ready.”

The Rustlers (14-4) took a 2-0 lead and never trailed, applying pressure to Viking goalie Yannck Laffiche, who was busy stopping eight first-half shots, 14 for the game. Golden West scored three goals in the second period and three in the third to lead, 8-7. Long Beach only got one shot off in the fourth period.