Men’s water polo: Down, but not out

SYDNEY, Australia - The United States Olympic men’s water polo

team, coached by Corona del Mar High skipper John Vargas and captained by

former CdM standout Chris Oeding, dropped a heartbreaker, 10-9, to

Hungary Tuesday in Sydney.

The U.S. falls to 1-3 at the Olympics, but can still advance to the

medal round with a win against Greece on Wednesday.

Oeding had two goals for the Americans, who controlled the contest

until the final few minutes.

The favored Hungarians, unbeaten in the Olympics and defending World

Cup champions, saw themselves trailing the U.S., 9-8, with under seven

minutes remaining.

But Hungary came back with two late goals to pull it out.

After two lethargic losses to Croatia and Yugoslavia, the U.S. bounced

back with a 12-8 win over the Netherlands.

After falling behind 5-3, the U.S. ripped off four straight goals to

take a 7-5 lead.

After Hungary tied the score at 7-7, Oeding scored from the top of the

arc to give the Americans the lead again.

Hungary again tied the score, but 18-year-old Tony Azevedo, the kid

who gave Newport Harbor fits last year for Long Beach Wilson High, scored

to give the U.S. a 9-8 lead.

The biggest positive of the match, according to Vargas and Oeding, was

that the U.S. finally played with the heart and spirit that was missing

in their first two losses.