Newport UpsetsTeam USA in Water Polo

EL TORO, Calif., June 22. THE USA men's water polo team fell behind early and was unable to rebound in a 10-6 loss to Newport Water Polo Foundation at El Toro High School on Saturday (June 22).

In its morning outing, the U.S. topped Long Beach Shore, 10-6, and stands poised to take on Newport again in tomorrow's championship game at the USA Water Polo National Training Center in Los Alamitos (Calif.).

Ryan Bailey got Newport rolling early with a point blank rocket past U.S. goalkeeper Merrill Moses at the 7:09 mark in the first quarter. On the ensuing possession, U.S. driver Adam Wright earned a six-meter penalty, but Wolf Wigo's shot attempt at the low-left corner was blocked by Newport keeper Genai Kerr.

Bailey notched his second goal less than a minute later on a turnaround sweep shot from set. Goals by Dan Klatt and Marc Hunt, and another by Bailey, gave Newport a 5-0 lead at by end of the first.

The U.S. finally got on the board with 7:01 to play in the second quarter on a goal by Jeff Nesmith. Nesmith buried his second goal with 3:49 in the quarter to bring the U.S. to within three at 5-2. Jeff Powers fed Brett Ormsby a few minutes later for a goal from two-meters out for Team USA's third consecutive goal. With 24 seconds left in the half, Andy Coffman halted the U.S. run with a skip shot past Moses. Newport led 6-3 at the half.

The U.S. drew first blood in the second half on a goal by Ormsby, his second, with 6:45 to play in the third quarter.

In the fourth, Newport took off on a 3-0 run of their own to run the score to 9-4 with 6:38 to play in the game. A pair of USA goals brought the score to 9-6 with just under two minutes to go in the game, but another goal by Bailey with three seconds on the clock capped the scoring at 10-6.

Bailey scored five goals in the win for Newport, while Ormsby tossed in three for the U.S.

The U.S. will grapple with Newport in the championship game at Los Alamitos tomorrow (June 23) at 12:30 p.m., while Long Beach Shore will take on the World All-Stars in the third place game at 11:00 a.m.

Team USA 0 3 1 2 — 6
Newport Water Polo Foundation 5 1 2 2 — 10

Individual Scoring
Team USA: Ormsby 3, Nesmith 2, Hudnut 1
Newport Water Polo Foundation: Bailey 5, Barry 1, Coffman 1, Hunt 1, Lynn
1, Klatt 1

Goal Saves
Team USA: Moses 6
Newport Water Polo Foundation: Kerr 11

In other games:

Game 1: Team USA 10, Long Beach Shore 6 For the second time in as many games, 2000 Olympian Wolf Wigo cut loose for four goals as the U.S. defeated Long Beach Shore, 10-6. Team USA keeper Merrill Moses was sharp in goal again, collecting nine saves in the win.

Adam Wright buried a pair of goals for the U.S., while 2000 Olympian Tony Azevedo netted a pair of his own in the loss.

Game 2: Newport Water Polo Foundation 8, World All-Stars 6 Fresh off of last night's 18-goal performance, Newport still had enough in the tank to oust the World All-Stars, 8-6. Fourth-quarter goals by national
teamers Omar Amr and Ryan Bailey erased a 6-6 impasse, as Newport moved to 2-0. Amr led the Newport offense with three goals, while teammates Bailey and Marc Hunt scored two apiece. USC standout Gadi Hadar led the World All-Stars with three goals. Newport goalkeeper Genai Kerr posted 11 saves.

Game 3: World All-Stars 13, Long Beach Shore 4
The World All-Stars broke free from a 4-4 tie in the third quarter, scoring nine unanswered goals en route to a 13-4 win over Long Beach Shore. Italian star Alberto Ghibellini scorched the net for four goals, while Ante Kunac, Stephen Lipinski, and Zolt Varga each scored two for the All-Stars. Goalie Marco Gerini stopped 13 shots in the cage. Sean Kern and Chris Segesman represented the whole of the Shore offense with two goals each. Brandon Brooks had eight first half saves for Long Beach.

Final Round Robin Standings
Team Games Win Loss Tie G + G – G.D. Pts.
Newport 3 3 0 0 36 24 +12 6
Team USA 3 2 1 0 24 23 +1 4
World All-Stars 3 1 2 0 26 20 +6 2
Long Beach Shore 3 0 3 0 22 41 -19 0

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