NEWBERG, Ore. — 13 athletes from No. 1-ranked/Pacific Coast Division Champion California Polytechnic State University scored – including netminder Koby Ramage (Sr., Visalia, Calif.) – as the Mustangs broke open a tied game with 44 seconds left in the second quarter via 14 unanswered goals to take a 19-5 decision in a 2022 Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship semifinal victory over Division III No. 1/No. 11/Great Lakes Division Champion Washington University in St. Louis.
The all-time leader in National Collegiate Club Championships with five (1999, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007) in eight title game appearances (1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008), the Mustangs of 11-time (1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2018, 2022) Pacific Coast Division Champion Cal Poly will seek to a sixth crown to the program’s record book following prior First (1999, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007), Second (2003, 2008) Third (2000, 2017, 2018) and Fifth (2006) Place marks since 2000.
The Mustangs will face another California school for the title as No. 2/Southwest Division Champion the University of California-San Diego downed No. 3/Big Ten Division Champion the University of Michigan by a 14-6 score in the other semifinal.
The Cal Poly-vs-UC San Diego title tilt is set for 12:45 p.m. Pacific on Sunday, November 13, while Washington University in St. Louis will take on Michigan in the Third Place game at 11:30 a.m.
Competing at the Chehalem Aquatic and Fitness Center, the Mustangs never trailed by jumping out to a 2-0 lead and then witnessing the Bears tie the game at two-all (6:38 left in second quarter) and five-all (44 seconds left in the second quarter) to put the prospect of a potential upset of the No. 1 team in the nation on the table.
However, the tides turned remarkably in favor of Cal Poly as the team posted two final goals in the second quarter with 33 and four seconds on the clock prior to outscoring Washington 6-0 in both the third and fourth quarters to account for a 14-0 run to the final horn.
For Cal Poly, Bennett Steiger (Fr., San Anselmo, Calif.) posted three goals, while Dylan Chmelka (Jr., Del Mar, Calif.), Grant Lautze (Sr., Lake Oswego, Calif.), Aidan Seed (So., Woodside, Calif.) and Scott Wright (Sr., Orange, Calif.) accounted for pairs. Kyle Bistrain (Jr., Los Altos, Calif.), Joey Grywczynski (Sr., Dublin, Calif.), Nathan Williams (Sr., Pleasanton, Calif.), Jack Sweet (Jr., Thousand Oaks, Calif.), Jake Anderson (Fr., Redwood City, Calif.), Dylan Weiglein (Sr., Pleasanton, Calif.), Joe Schaner (Sr., Valley Center, Calif.) and Ramage each slipped in single shots to account for the remainder of the Mustangs’ offense.
Besides his goal, Ramage also made four saves to earn the win as the goalkeeper of record for Cal Poly.
Across the tank, Jake Engelberg (So., Los Angeles, Calif.) and Antonio Mendez (So., Baltimore, Md.) both scored twice for Washington with Chris Allen (Jr., Fullerton, Calif.) chipping in a solo marker. Asher Schwartz (So., Los Angeles, Calif.) took the loss in net for the Bears with 10 saves.
Washington – which claimed seven Division III Club National Championships and previously finished in 12th (2000) and Third (2021) Place at the National Collegiate Club Championship – will seek to equal its all-time best finish at the event tomorrow against Michigan.
| 1st Q | 2nd Q | 3rd Q | 4th Q | – | FINAL | |
| Division III No. 1/No. 11 Washington University in St. Louis | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | – | 5 |
| No. 1 California Polytechnic State University |
2 | 5 | 6 | 6 | – | 19 |
| Cal Poly Goals: | Bennett Steiger (3); Dylan Chmelka (2); Grant Lautze (2); Aidan Seed (2); Scott Wright (2); Kyle Bistrain; Joey Grywczynski; Nathan Williams; Jack Sweet; Jake Anderson; Dylan Weiglein; Joe Schaner; Koby Ramage | |||||
| Washington (Mo.) Goals: | Antonio Mendez (2); Jake Engelberg (2); Chris Allen; | |||||
| Saves: | Cal Poly – Koby Ramage (4) ; Washington (Mo.) – Asher Schwartz (10) | |||||
| Exclusions: | Cal Poly – 3 ; Washington (Mo.) – 5 | |||||
| Advantage Opportunities: | Cal Poly – 1-for-5 ; Washington (Mo.) – 2-for-3 | |||||
| Sprints: | Cal Poly – 3-for-4 (1st, 3rd, 4th); Washington (Mo.) -1-for-4 (2nd) | |||||
| Cards/Misconducts: | None | |||||
| Officials: | Mike McMahon, Jahn Trutna | |||||
Washington University in St. Louis’ Asher Schwartz (#1) goes up for a save attempt
Washington University in St. Louis’ Chris Allen (#4) pursues California Polytechnic State University’s Diego Barraclough (#21)
California Polytechnic State University’s Bennett Steiger (#24)
