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California State University, Fullerton

Julian Nichols

Titans Beat Cal Lutheran, La Verne on Day Two of Gary Troyer Invitational

Undefeated run at tournament extends win streak to five games

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 CLAREMONT, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton men's water polo defeated Cal Lutheran 17-12 before securing a 19-13 victory over La Verne on Day Two of the Gary Troyer Invitational. The Titans return home undefeated at the tournament and are now 14-7 overall. 

Cal State Fullerton 17, Cal Lutheran 12

Julian Nichols (3 G, 1 A) deposited a shot after a minute of play to start the scoring for the Titans. Togan Ozbek (5 G, 3 A) and Nichols scored two goals for a 4-2 Fullerton lead at the end of the first quarter. 
 

Bende Aubeli completed a pass from Ozbek to start the second quarter before Ozbek put his third goal away on the power-play. 

After Dominic Hernandez drew a penalty, the Titans sent Zack Ewing (4 G) to the five-meter line. Ewing capitalized on the foul and added another tally for an 8-4 lead with 2:36 left in the half. 

Alec Isaacman was the last Titan to find the back of the net before the break, entering halftime with a 9-5 lead over the Kingsmen. Fullerton maintained a steady pace after the break. Ozbek recorded two more goals in the third quarter and Ethan Cooney made his way onto the scoreboard with an assist from Jacob Hatch. 
 

Fullerton led 12-8 with eight minutes remaining. Hernandez sandwiched a goal by Nichols in the final quarter for a 15-9 lead before Ewing beat the goalie with 3:14 on the clock. Ewing added the game's final goal for the Titans with a one-man advantage.

The Kingsmen scored two goals in an effort to chip away at Fullerton's lead but fell short. The Titans secured their third win at the Gary Troyer Invitational, 17-12. 

Cal State Fullerton 19, La Verne 13 

After a game-time delay, Nichols gave the Titans an early 1-0 lead over the Leopards once things got underway. 
 

La Verne beat Henderson at the goal to even the score at 1-1, but a rebounded recovery from Hatch put the Titans back on top. Hernandez contributed with a goal three minutes into the game for a 3-1 lead. Aubeli and Nichols found the back of the net to lead 5-1 with one quarter in the books. 

Ozbek found an open Ethan Cooney to complete the back-handed goal. The tip-in came on a one-man advantage, giving the Titans a 7-1 lead. Ozbek, Hatch and Paredes (2) contributed to Fullerton's 11-4 lead at halftime. 
 

Seth Zarn replaced Garrett Henderson in goal after the break. Henderson, who served in goal for Game One, finished the first half with four saves. Not as many Fullerton arms found success in the third quarter, but Hatch (2) and Nichols (2) extended their lead over La Verne, 15-6, by the time the clock struck zero.

The Leopards found momentum in the fourth quarter, scoring seven goals, however, Isaacman and Ayala dented the twine two times each to stay ahead and beat La Verne, 19-13. 

The Titans will take a road trip to UC Santa Barbara on Saturday, Oct. 7, for a doubleheader against UC Merced at 12 p.m. and Big West opponent UCSB at 5 p.m. 

WATCH THE TITANS ON ESPN+
Titans fans can now watch every home event exclusively on ESPN+. Cal State Fullerton has built a top-tier production studio to give the viewers an ESPN quality production for all games at Titan Stadium. Additionally, all schools in the Big West Conference are committed to producing ESPN quality streams which will allow fans to watch the Titans on ESPN+ for all road conference games.

FOLLOW THE TITANS!
Fans can keep up with the latest in Titan Athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook/FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) Instagram (@FullertonTitans). In addition, the water polo teams have established their own Twitter (@Fullerton_WP) and Instagram accounts (@Fullerton_WP).
 
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