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Michigan State University-vs.-University of California-San Diego Scoresheet (2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship – 1st Place)

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — Ben Daugherty (Sr., Dexter, Mich.) scored four times to claim Tournament Most Valuable Player honors and Ian Worst (So., Hudsonville, Mich.) put away four shots – including the game-winner in the final minute – as the Big Ten Division Champion/No. 2-ranked Spartans of Michigan State University used a fourth quarter surge to edge Pacific Coast Division Champion/No. 1 the University of California-San Diego by a 12-11 score in the 2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship title game.

  • Competing at the Huntsville Aquatics Center, Michigan State claimed the program’s fourth Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship in six title game appearances.  The 2000 (vs. University of Washington), 2006 (vs. Grand Valley State University) and 2008 (vs. California Polytechnic State University) titlist with runner-up finishes in 2005 (vs. Grand Valley State) and 2007 (vs. Cal Poly), the Spartans move into a tie with Cal Poly (2001, 2002, 2004, 2007) for the second most National Collegiate Club Championships behind only five-time victor Lindenwood University (2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019).
  • Michigan State jumped on top first as Gavin Saur (Jr., Rockford, Mich.) buried a chance with 5:59 left in the first quarter for a quick 1-0 Spartans’ lead.  The advantage was short-lived, however, as Jack Harper (Sr., San Diego, Calif.) and Graham McClone (Gr., Placerville, Calif.) finished shots at 5:35 and 4:31, respectively, to place the Tritons ahead 2-1 and set the back-and-forth pattern which defined the contest.
  • True to the national ranking of the two programs as the best-of the-best in the men’s collegiate club ranks this year, Ewan Woolcock (Sr., Okemos, Mich.) and Saur answered for MSU at 1:46 and 1:30, respectively, to turn the tables and return the Spartans to the lead at 3-2.  However, Jordi Rivera (Sr., Madrid, Spain) posted an equalizer with 16 ticks left in the first quarter to knot the game at three-all through seven minutes of play.
  • The teams continued to land scoring blows throughout the duration of the second quarter as McClone put away a man-up chance at 6:46 before Daugherty answered at 4:49 to retie the game at four-all. Andrew Schade (Sr., Solana Beach, Calif.) put UC-San Diego in front once more at 3:36 with his team’s second of three advantage scores, but Paul Sikkema (Sr., Rockford, Mich.) and Daugherty hammered home back-to-back scoring bids at 2:24 and 2:00, respectively, to return the lead to MSU at 6-5.
  • Similar to every lead in the game until the fourth quarter, the life span of the advantage was minuscule as Max Black (So., Seattle, Wash.) put away man-up (40 seconds) and even-strength (17 seconds) scores in the final minute to shift the momentum back to Michigan State and provide the Spartans a 7-6 lead entering halftime.
  • Michigan State appeared to be on the ropes in the opening minutes of the third quarter as Rivera widened the scoreboard disparity between the teams to a pair of goals at 8-6 with 5:48 on the clock.
  • Trailing by a pair with the potential for the title game to get out of reach quickly, Daugherty went to work by torquing in a man-up score at 3:53 and helping to set-up a strike by Worst at 3:46 to square the squads at eight-all.
  • UC-San Diego regained the lead for the final time at the 2:42 mark as Arthur Sefayan (Jr., Ventura, Calif.) flung in a marker to make it 9-8 in favor of the Tritons.
  • The goal proved to be the turning point in the game as the Green & White got hot down the stretch to rally for the program’s fourth National Championship.
  • Worst proved to be best in the closing minutes of the third quarter as the sophomore sunk a shot with 1:31 on the clock to balance the scoreboard at nine-all.
  • An MSU exclusion call against McClone with no time left in the third quarter proved to be a deciding factor in the game’s outcome as Worst cashed in the opportunity with 6:45 left in the fourth quarter to make it 10-9 in favor of the Spartans.
  • Daugherty followed with an insurance tally at 5:07 to give Michigan State its largest lead of the game at two goals (11-9) with approximately five minutes to play.
  • The Tritons refused to have a fork stuck in them, however, as McClone fired in back-to-back strikes at 1:51 and 1:02 to tie the score and raise the specter of overtime.
  • Worst put the threat of overtime to rest in short order, however, by ripping a shot into the mesh with 41 seconds left for the deciding factor to allow the Spartans to escape Alabama with the National Championship and the title of the best men’s collegiate club team for the 2021 season.
  • For the National Champion Spartans, Daugherty led the way with four goals to lock-up MVP status for his performance during the course of the weekend.  Worst equaled Daugherty with four markers, while Saur (two), Sikkema and Woolcock combined for account for MSU’s other four tallies.
  • Across the tank, McClone notched four goals with Black and Rivera both finding the back of the cage twice.  Sefayan, Harper and Shade each chipped in single scores.
  • Between the pipes, Ethan Springer (Jr., Hudsonville, Mich.) stopped eight saves to earn the win.  Thomas Winham (Sr., Cheshire, England) turned away 12 shots in taking the loss for UC-San Diego.
  • Historically, Michigan State’s win continues a trend of Midwest dominance over the past several years at the Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship.  Former collegiate club program Lindenwood University – located in St. Charles, Mo. – took home the 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019 National Championships with a loss in the 2013 title game. Overall, six of the last seven National Championship plaques have gone home with a team from an institution in the Midwest of the United States.
  • Historically, UC-San Diego has now finished Second, Third (2019 at the University of Pittsburgh), Fifth (2018 at the University of Arizona) and Ninth (2019 at home) in its four trips to the National Collegiate Club Championship.

 

1st Q 2nd Q 3rd Q 4th Q FINAL
University of California-San Diego
3 4 2 2 11
Michigan State University 3 3 3 3 12
MSU Goals: Ben Daugherty (4); Ian Worst (4); Gavin Saur (2); Paul Sikkema; Ewan Woolcock
UC San Diego Goals: Graham McClone (4); Max Black (2); Jordi Rivera (2); Arthur Sefayan; Jack Harper; Andrew Schade
Saves: MSU – Ethan Springer (8) ; UC San Diego – Thomas Winham (12)
Exclusions: MSU – 6 ; UC San Diego – 7
Advantage Opportunities: MSU – 2-for-7 ; UC San Diego – 3-for-6
Sprints: MSU – 3-for-3 ; UC San Diego -0-for-3
Cards/Misconducts: None
Officials: Bruce Morehouse; Brandon Nicholson

Following the championship game, the 2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship All-Tournament Team was announced:

2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship All-Tournament Team
Most Valuable Player: Ben Daugherty (Michigan State University)
Coach of the Tournament: Miguel Figueras (Washington University in St. Louis)
First Team
Thomas Windham (Goalie) University of California-San Diego
Graham McClone University of California-San Diego
Ben Daugherty Michigan State University
Jack Sikkema Michigan State University
Alex Lee University of California
Mitch Fargo University of Southern California
Zach Hausner Washington University in St. Louis
Second Team
Randy Mora (Goalie) University of California
Kai Mohl University of California
Ian Worst
Michigan State University
Jack Harper University of California-San Diego
Reid Schioldager University of Colorado
Hayatt Kay-Ramos University of Pennsylvania
Antonio Mendez Washington University in St. Louis

 


2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship Most Valuable Player Ben Daugherty (#12)


2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship Runner-Up: The University of California-San Diego


2021 Men’s National Collegiate Club Champion: Michigan State University

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