LONG BEACH, CALIF. – Led by three goals from freshman Nicholas Carniglia and two goals apiece from senior Matt Russell, redshirt freshman J.D. Ratchford and freshman Luca Cupido, Cal men's water polo placed fifth at the 2014 MPSF Tournament with a 14-7 win over Pepperdine Sunday in Long Beach.

With the victory, Kirk Everist's squad finished the 2014 campaign 22-7 after falling to host Long Beach State, 9-6, in the tournament opener Friday; before rebounding to defeat UC Santa Barbara, 11-9, on Saturday and Pepperdine today.

Nine different Bears scored during the final match of the year with seniors Aleksa Saponjic and Blake Kelly, junior Colin Mulcahy, sophomore Thomas Carroll and freshman Pedro Stellet also tallying goals for Cal. Senior Jon Sibley and sophomore Lazar Andric split time at goalie versus the Waves. Sibley had two saves in the first half and Andric recorded five saves in the second half.

The Bears jumped out to a 3-1 first quarter lead on goals by Saponjic, Cupido and Russell. Cal then dominated the second period, outscoring Pepperdine, 5-2, on a pair of goals by Ratchford and goals from Carniglia, Mulcahy and Cupido to take an 8-3 halftime lead. Both squads scored three times in the third period – with Carniglia scoring two of his three goals – before the Bears sealed the victory by outscoring the Waves, 3-1, in the final quarter for the 14-7 win.

It was the final collegiate match for Cal seniors Saponjic, Kelly, Russell, Sibley and Luka Ivanovic. Saponjic is a three-time All-American and won a bronze medal with his native Serbia at the 2012 London Olympics.