Friday, October 3
LBCC Aquatics Complex
6 p.m.
Long Beach State University
16
vs
17
Pepperdine
No. 9 Long Beach State Falls To No.10 Pepperdine On Sudden Death Overtime, 17-16
10/3/2025 8:46:00 PM | Men's Water Polo
Caleb Francisco led the offense with a season-high of six goals and reached the 100 career-goal milestone in the night.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – With a full house at the LBCC Aquatics Complex, No. 9 Long Beach State rallied from a four-goal deficit with three minutes left in the game to take the match into overtime but fell short, with No. 10 Pepperdine taking the game in sudden victory, 17-16.
Pepperdine (9-6) got on the board quickly, but freshman Zalán Nagy tied it for the Beach (9-5) right after. The Waves controlled the rest of the quarter, scoring four unanswered goals to lead 5-1. A late goal by Marc Frigola shortened the lead for the Beach, but a buzzer-beater by Pepperdine made it 6-2 in their favor after the first period.
Francisco scored quickly in the second to make it a three-goal game, but the Waves continued to build momentum, scoring four in a row to lead by seven after the first two quarters, 10-3.
After trading goals early in the third, senior Jason O'Donnell added one to the scoresheet, and Artur Diaz scored on a penalty shot to cut the Waves' lead to 11-6. Pepperdine answered, but Spaniards Gabi Acosta and Sandro Pueyo both scored to trim the lead to four. Both teams traded goals as the Beach trailed 13-9 with one quarter left in regulation.
Acosta and Francisco kept the momentum going for the Beach early in the fourth, cutting the Waves' lead to two. Pepperdine bounced back with two of their own to lead 15-11 with 2:54 left. Long Beach State rallied from the four-goal deficit, with Francisco scoring with three seconds left in regulation to tie the game 15-15.
In the first overtime period, Francisco gave LBSU their first lead of the game, but Pepperdine tied it once again. The second period saw plenty of action, with Acosta missing an extra-man opportunity with a second left on the clock. In sudden-death overtime, the Waves scored quickly to secure the thrilling win over the Beach, 17-16.
The Beach will open conference play at Cal State Fullerton on October 9 at 6 p.m. live on ESPN+ with live stats provided through TheFOSH.net.
Pepperdine (9-6) got on the board quickly, but freshman Zalán Nagy tied it for the Beach (9-5) right after. The Waves controlled the rest of the quarter, scoring four unanswered goals to lead 5-1. A late goal by Marc Frigola shortened the lead for the Beach, but a buzzer-beater by Pepperdine made it 6-2 in their favor after the first period.
Francisco scored quickly in the second to make it a three-goal game, but the Waves continued to build momentum, scoring four in a row to lead by seven after the first two quarters, 10-3.
After trading goals early in the third, senior Jason O'Donnell added one to the scoresheet, and Artur Diaz scored on a penalty shot to cut the Waves' lead to 11-6. Pepperdine answered, but Spaniards Gabi Acosta and Sandro Pueyo both scored to trim the lead to four. Both teams traded goals as the Beach trailed 13-9 with one quarter left in regulation.
Acosta and Francisco kept the momentum going for the Beach early in the fourth, cutting the Waves' lead to two. Pepperdine bounced back with two of their own to lead 15-11 with 2:54 left. Long Beach State rallied from the four-goal deficit, with Francisco scoring with three seconds left in regulation to tie the game 15-15.
In the first overtime period, Francisco gave LBSU their first lead of the game, but Pepperdine tied it once again. The second period saw plenty of action, with Acosta missing an extra-man opportunity with a second left on the clock. In sudden-death overtime, the Waves scored quickly to secure the thrilling win over the Beach, 17-16.
The Beach will open conference play at Cal State Fullerton on October 9 at 6 p.m. live on ESPN+ with live stats provided through TheFOSH.net.
Players Mentioned
Center
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