SANTA ANA - Orange Empire Conference competition got underway today in the Dons pool with SAC hosting Golden West College. The defending state champion Rustlers defeated the host Dons 18-7 to improve to 8-1 on the season and 1-0 in the OEC. The loss drops the Dons to 4-5 on the season and 0-1 in conference.

Golden West outscored the Dons 5-2 in the first quarter and 4-1 in the second quarter to take a 9-3 lead into the half. The third quarter matched the second quarter with the Rustlers getting a 3-1 advantage before closing out the match with a 5-3 fourth quarter.

For the Dons, Michael Nyberg led the way with three goals while Clayton Boling and Alejandro Aguilera-Mercado added two goals apiece.