Riverside City College Tiger Lennon Franklin scoring late in the fourth quarter to put Riverside 11-4 during their match up against the Cypress College Chargers at the RCC Aquatics Center on Oct 18. Photo by James Jameiro. 
Riverside City College Tiger Goalkeeper Nathan Dulkis rushing to prevent Cypress College Charger attacker from getting the ball during their match up against the Chargers at the RCC Aquatics Center on Oct 18. 
Three Riverside City College Tiger defenders showing great hustle early in the first half during their match up against the Cypress College Chargers at the RCC Aquatics Center on Oct 18. Photo by James Jameiro.
By Ethan Aguilera
Riverside City College men’s water polo secured a dominant win over Cypress College on Oct. 18.
The game got off to an immediate start, with a goal from sophomore right driver Connor Lynton.
Freshman Lennon Franklin contributed two more goals, allowing RCC to establish a commanding lead of 4-1 by the end of the first quarter.
Cypress, however, proved resilient. The Tigers scored three straight goals, maintaining a 7-2 lead, but Cypress countered with two consecutive scores, narrowing the score to 7-4 by halftime.
Despite this, RCC remained focused, dominating the third quarter with two straight scores from sophomore Nicolas Sadowski and Shane Randle. The Tigers limited Cypress to a single goal, keeping the lead 11-4.
“Our defense was the best point of our game today,” freshman driver Ethan Pham said. “We kept the enemy to a low score.”
The fourth quarter presented both teams’ offensive struggles, with neither side scoring points throughout the quarter.
“We started pretty good, we just had to pull through,” freshman Colby Martin said. “Most of our players played pretty good. Aggressive when we had to, and we shot pretty well.”
In the end, RCC clinched an 11-4 victory, maintaining a solid performance despite the challenge in the fourth quarter.
“We’re gonna have to fix certain parts of our game (today) and translate it to Friday’s game,” men’s water polo head coach Jason Northcott said.
RCC will participate in the Orange Empire Championships hosted by Saddleback College on Nov. 2.
