Oxy Concludes Record Breaking Season

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Dec. 9, 2008) – The 2008 season caps off one of the best seasons in Men’s Water Polo history.  From overall effort in the pool against the best in the country to individual team records being smashed, the 2008 season was one for the record books.

In the pool, the Tigers finished 6th nationally in the final CWPA/NCAA Division III poll, averaging 10.30 goals per game, good for 14th in the nation. Their nine goals allowed per game was the 17th lowest in the country.  Along with notching 16 overall victories, the highest win total for the program in the last 10 years.  The teams 7-3 conference mark and 4th place conference finish were also Occidental’s best in over a decade. 

            That kind of season led the way to some individual honors for Seniors Cameron Brahmst and Andrew Valdes, who capped off their four year Oxy Water Polo careers with First Team All-SCIAC selections in 2008.  For team co-captain Brahmst, it was his third All-SCIAC selection as he garnered 2nd Team honors in 2006 and 2007.  Valdes was also a 2nd team recipient in 2007. 

To put together this kind of season, though, the team as a whole had to perform better then their Tiger counterparts had in the past, and the numbers backed that claim up.  Oxy set a school records for Goals Scored (309), Steals (354), and Assists (209).  Which led to some incredible numbers for athletes such as Valdes, who put together one of the most memorable individual seasons in the programs 82 year history.  His 88 goals shattered the single season school record and also placed him 2nd in the nation amongst all NCAA/NAIA players in 2008.  In addition he led the team with 58 steals, third most in school history.  Brahmst, who was second on the team in goals scored in 2008 also received national attention as his 47 goals ranked him 45th in the country.  Junior goal keeper Max Kelly tallied 197 saves in 19 games played.  The 10.37 saves per game ranked him seventh in the nation. 

            Looking towards the future the Tigers will not only lose both Brahmst and Valdes to graduation, but the team will say good bye to seniors Abiel Garcia, Sean Inoue, and John Wensman.  Every one making a huge impact on the program over the past four years, and will be greatly missed, but can leave knowing they have helped build the foundation for something very special.  “I absolutely believe we’ve turned a corner in terms of our competitiveness in the NCAA.  We’re all very proud of everything the guys accomplished this year, but I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg for this program.  I’m already very excited about 2009 and beyond.”  Stated head coach Larry Zubrin.  In his six years at Oxy, Zubrin’s record now boasts 80 career wins, including 30 wins in the past two seasons.  The best two year run the program has seen since the 1993 and 94 seasons.