Thumbnail Reports on FINA World League Games Across Southland Leading to Super-Final

Editor's Note: In this summer of Southern California water events, not all world class events have been held in a Long Beach parking lot. The final round of FINA World League games before the Super-final were held from San Diego to the north side of Los Angeles, with these regional games all drawing in excess of a thousand spectators. Then the Super-final followed the Swimming Trials, Women's Water Polo Super Final and the Janet Evans Invitational in the Charter All Digital Aquatic Centre in Long Beach.

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La Jolla, CA, July 7, 2004–A whopping 2,325 fans packed themselves into La Jolla's Coggan Family Aquatic Complex to catch a glimpse of the U.S. Men's National Team taking on the world and Olympic champion Hungary on Wednesday night. Sitting or standing, they got an eyeful. Team USA held close the whole way, taking an early lead, losing it and tying it up three times before Hungary made a late run in the fourth quarter to post an 11-8 victory over the USA in the FINA World League. The win avenged Hungary's 11-9 loss to the United States on Monday and pulls Hungary even with Serbia and Montenegro atop the Group B standings. Serbia and Montenegro beat Australia 14-6 on Wednesday night to improve its record to 7-3 in World League play. Team USA next faces Serbia and Montenegro at 7 p.m. on July 10 at USC's McDonald's Swim Center in Los Angeles, Calif.

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Los Angeles, CA, July 10, 2004—The U.S. men’s water polo team hit an offensive rut in a 9-6 FINA World League loss to Serbia and Montenegro before 1,015 fans at USC’s McDonald’s Swim Center in Los Angeles, Calif. The win gave Serbia and Montenegro a 9-3 record heading into the final day of the season tomorrow (Sunday).

The U.S. will tangle with Serbia and Montenegro in tomorrow’s regular season finale in a 7:00 p.m. game at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo, Calif. Australia and Hungary will meet in the early game at 5:30 p.m. The U.S. will host the 3rd FINA World League Super Final July 16-18 at the Charter All Digital Aquatic Centre in Long Beach, Calif

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Mission Viejo, CA, July 11, 2004—The U.S. men’s water polo team came back
from an early deficit to defeat No. 3-ranked Serbia and Montenegro, 11-10,
in a FINA World League penalty shootout before 1,172 fans at Capistrano
Valley High School in Mission Viejo, Calif. Layne Beaubien’s bullet into the high right corner on the final shot of the five-meter shootout sealed the deal for the U.S. in a white-watered regular season finale. The U.S. will be the No. 3 seed in Group B at next weekend’s, six-team (July 16-18) FINA World League Super Finals in Long Beach, Calif.

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