Courtesy: USA Water Polo
BERLIN, Germany – The USA Men’s National Team stopped a two-game slide and picked up their first win at the 2018 FINA World Cup with a 15-6 win over South Africa.
Max Irving (Long Beach, CA/UCLA/NYAC) led the offense with four goals while Jack Turner (Fremont, CA/UC San Diego/Sunset San Diego) went the distance in net making eight saves.
Team USA returns to action Friday in quarterfinal action against an opponent to be determined. All matches stream live and are available on-demand on FINA TV by visiting FINATV.LIVE (subscription required). For more information on the Team USA roster, schedule and new rules that are being tested at this event, click here.
The USA Men got off to a strong start in the first quarter grabbing a 5-0 lead in the opening eight minutes. South Africa got on the board in the second quarter with two goals but Team USA responded with three scores of their own for an 8-2 lead at halftime. The offensive onslaught continued in the third quarter with five more goals from the United States as they built a 13-3 advantage. South Africa outscored Team USA 3-2 in the fourth quarter but it didn’t factor in the decision as the United States won 15-6.
Team USA went 4/10 on power plays and 1/2 on penalties while South Africa was 1/6 on power plays with no penalties attempted.
Scoring
USA – 15 (5, 3, 5, 2) M. Irving 4, A. Obert 3, N. Carniglia 2, L. Cupido 2, J. Hooper 1, B. Hallock 1, B. Stevenson 1, A. Roelse 1
RSA – 6 (0, 2, 1, 3)
Saves – USA – J. Turner 8
6×5 – USA – 4/10 – RSA – 1/6
Penalties – USA – 1/2 – RSA – 0/0