Alfano Scores Four, Warriors Roll

By Brandon Petersen

The audience was large and boisterous for the Westcliff men's water polo home opener Tuesday at the Woollett Aquatic Center in Irvine, and the home fans went away happy following the Warriors' 13-10 win over Biola. 

"First, thanks for the support," Westcliff head coach Preslav Djippov said. "It was really great to see so many student-athletes from Westcliff University supporting our team. That was a first home, and we're really excited about this win."

Biola took the lead early, but Westcliff answered right back, scoring a pair in 40 seconds off the fingertips of Andrej Maodus and Mateja Bosic. 

The Warriors went up 3-1 on Vincenzo Inguanta's score at the 3:10 mark of the first, then took control with a 4-1 advantage when Due Marsinach found next a minute into the second. 

Giljan Alfano scored four goals on six shots, and collected a steal, while Inguanta finished with three scores and four assists.

"My teammates played with a lot of energy," Keeper Roberto Berrera said. "We're getting better and better, year by year — compared to last year, it's way better. Playing a home game here and having our fans, it was great support, and we really love having them."

It was a back-and-forth match from the second quarter on, highlighted by a number of great stops from Barrera.

The Warriors' star keeper finished with 12 saves (.545) and snagged a steal. 

"I feel like we didn't perform as well as we did last weekend, simply because we had some players out," Djippov said. "Defensively, we did OK, we just need to be a little bit more patient and creative when it comes to putting the ball away."

Westcliff's gauntlet season continues Thursday when the Warriors (5-3) travel to UCSB to take on the NCAA No. 8 Gauchos. 

Westcliff faces No. 10 Pepperdine in the nightcap.