Dec. 1, 2007

PALO ALTO, CALIF. - The top-seeded USC men's water polo team is lined up for its third consecutive NCAA title match after topping fourth-seeded LMU 8-4 on Saturday afternoon in the NCAA Tournament semifinals. For the fourth straight game, sophomore Matt Sagehorn tallied a hat trick for the Trojans, who took an early lead and never lost control in their win over the Lions. USC's victory pushes the Trojans into the 2007 NCAA championship game, where they will face defending national champ California at 2 p.m. on Sunday (Dec. 2) at Stanford's Avery Aquatic Center.

Against LMU on Saturday, the Trojans led 1-0 after the first frame and then picked up the pace in the second, streaking to a 4-0 lead. The Lions cut no closer than to make it a two-goal game before USC again moved ahead and led 5-2 at halftime. The Trojan defense kept up its stifling stand in the second half, limiting the Lions' shot count while goalie Adam Shilling finished the match with three saves.

USC managed three more goals - the last two from the hands of senior Drew Vyn - before the final buzzer, allowing only two more LMU strikes as the Trojans punched their ticket to the NCAA final to get within reach of a fourth national championship for USC. The Trojans last won the NCAA crown in 2005 with a 3-2 win over Stanford. USC lost in the last second to Cal in the 2006 NCAA final.

Sagehorn's three-goal game extends his multiple-goal scoring streak to 11 straight games. The sophomore leads USC in scoring with 38 goals this season.

#1 USC 8, #4 LMU 4
USC 1 - 4 - 2 - 1 -- 8
LMU 0 - 2 - 1 - 1 -- 4

SCORING:
USC - Matt Sagehorn 3, Drew Vyn 2, Justin Rappel, Gabor Sarusi, Jovan Vranes.
LMU - Hummel 3, Lormant.

SAVES: Adam Shilling (USC) 3, Andy Stevens (LMU) 10.