Late goals help Panthers upset Whittier in 3-OT victory

ORANGE, Calif. – Senior pair Willis Allen and Stephen Neil led the Chapman University men's water polo in an intense overtime battle with second-place Whittier College on Wednesday night. The Panthers upset the Poets in sudden death with a key goal by junior Corey Plaster to give Chapman the 18-17 victory at Allred Pool.

Tied 17-17 in the third overtime, Plaster scored the game-winning goal for the Panthers to give Chapman the 18-17 victory. Plaster earned a hat trick in the match including an impressive behind-the-back goal in the third quarter.

Neil was a force at net all night setting a career-high of 18 blocks, including double digit blocks in the first half alone. Neil now ranks fifth overall in CU history with 550-plus career saves over his impressive four year career.

The Panther offense was led by Allen who set a career-high of nine goals in the 3-OT match. Trailing 17-16 in the first overtime, the utility scored the tying goal to push Chapman and Whittier into sudden death.

The Chapman offense came out aggressive with Allen leading the Panthers with a pair of goals in the first quarter to give Chapman the early 6-4 lead. Whittier etched its way back into the game to tighten the score 8-7 at the end of the second quarter.  

In the third quarter, the Poets rallied to tie the match 10-10, shooting goal-for-goal with the Panthers down to the last minute. With ten seconds left in the third quarter, sophomore Jeff O'Brien found the back of the net to give the Panthers an 11-10 lead.

Allen then allowed the Panthers to run away with the lead, scoring back-to-back goals in the fourth to give Chapman the 13-10 lead. Yet the Poets weren't to be counted out, going on a 4-0 run to take the lead 14-13. An under-the-gun shot by senior Garrett Aanestad with two seconds left on the clock allowed the Panthers to push the match into overtime and ultimately get the win.

Chapman will host Air Force Academy on Friday, Nov. 13 for its final home match of the season. The Panthers will recognize five seniors on Senior Day Friday with the match set to start at 3 p.m.

by Raquel Rinauro
Sports Information Assistant

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