Tigers Gain Ground at Inland Empire Classic.
The Men's Water Polo Team, currently ranked #10 in Division III closed the gap against #1 Whittier College, while also competing against two of the nation's best Division I #2 USC and #3 UCLA at the Inland Empire Classic last weekend.
Game #1: #10 Occidental-6 #6 University of Redlands-13
Pre-Game Notes:
-The two teams last met on Oct 16 of 2013 at Occidental with the Bulldogs taking a 17-6 win.
-Occidental entered the game with an 0-2 record, while the Bulldogs came in with an 0-5 mark.
Highlights:
-Redlands jumped on the Tigers early scoring the game's first three goals and took a 6-2 lead into the half. Oxy cut the lead to one in the third quarter, before the Bulldogs would pull away with a late fourth quarter run to preserve the win.
-Oxy struggled with their shooting making just six of a season high 32 attempts on goal.
-The Tigers converted just 3 of 13 power play opportunities.
Box Score 1st 2nd 3rd 4th TOTAL
Occidental 0 2 3 1 6
Redlands 3 3 2 5 13
Occidental Stats:
Goals/Shots: Akiyama-2/8, Bergevin-2/9, Rodriguez-1/4, Heffner-1/2, Russell-0/2, Weiser-0/2, Rothwell-0/2, Munet-0/1, Franscioni-0/1, Bass-0/1
Steals: Needleman-4, Heffner-2, Munet-1, Russell-1, Rodriguez-1, Franscioni-1, Bass-1
Assists: Rodriguez-2, Bergevin-1, Bass-1
Turn-Overs: Bergevin-6, Munet-2, Rodrguez-2, Heffner-2, Rothwell-1, Needleman-1, Bass-1
Field Blocks: Munet-2, Woodland-1
Exclusions/Drawn: Munet-2/0, Rothwell-2/0, Weiser-1/1, Bergevin-1/0, Heffner-1/3, Akiyama-1/0, Bass-1/0, Russell-0/1, Rodriguez-0/3, Franscioni-0/3, Sinclair-0/1, Woodland-0/1
Saves/Goals Allowed: Needleman-10/13
Quotes:
Senior Co-Captain Jack Sinclair on the late 4th quarter run by Redlands:
"They have a deep roster and were able to use that to their advantage against us, but it's early in the season and we're still focusing on building our fitness level. I think we have the potential to improve against them later in the season."
Game #2: DIII #10 Occidental-0 DI #2 USC-24
Pre-Game Notes:
-This was the first meeting between the two teams since 2005, when the Trojans beat the Tigers 11-0.
-USC has previously picked up wins against three other SCIAC teams: (24-5 vs. La Verne, 27-7 vs. Redlands, and 21-6 vs. Chapman.)
-Sophomore Goalie Adam Florsheim notched a career best 18 saves against the Trojans.
Box Score: 1st 2nd 3rd 4th TOTAL
Occidental 0 0 0 0 0
USC 10 6 3 5 24
Occidental Stats:
Goals/Attempts: Rodriguez-0/5, Akiyama-0/3, Munet-0/1, Russell-0/1, Weiser-0/1, Bergevin-0/1, Heffner-0/1, Sinclair-0/1
Steals: Rodriguez-1, Rothwell-1, Akiyama-1
Turn-Overs: Rodriguez-6, Heffner-4, Munet-2, Bergevin-2, Akiyama-2, Florsheim-1, Weiser-1, Sinclair-1
Field Blocks: Rodrgiuez-1, Weiser-1, Akiyama-1
Exclusions/Drawn: Russell-1/0, Rodrgiuez-1/0, Weiser-2/0, Rothwell-1/0, Bergevin-2/1, Sinclair-1/0, Akiyama-0/1
Saves/Goals Allowed: Florsheim-18/24
Quotes:
Head Coach Larry Zubrin on competing against one of the top programs in the country:
"Water Polo at the NCAA level is unique to other college sports. Rarely, if ever, do Division III student athletes get the chance to say they competed against the best players in their sport. Several members of their program have experience at the International level. It's an outstanding opportunity for our guys to play and learn from some of the best players in the country."
Game 3: DIII #10 Occidental-2 DI #3 UCLA-23
Pre-Game Notes:
-This was the first meeting between the two teams since 2007, when the Bruins beat the Tigers 18-3.
-The Bruins had previously played and defeated four other SCIAC opponents: (Redlands-27-1, Whittier-21-3, La Verne-24-1, and CMS 13-7.
Highlights:
-Sophomore Paul Bergevin, Oxy's leading scorer so far this season, got the Tigers on the board with a shot from 9meters mid-way through the second quarter.
-Senior Co-Captain Sam Akiyama tallied the Tigers only other score early in the third on a cross pass from sophomore Hank Franscioni.
Box Score 1st 2nd 3rd 4th TOTAL
Occidental 0 1 1 0 2
UCLA 6 7 5 5 23
Occidental Stats:
Goals/Attempts: Bergevin-1/1, Akiyama-1/6, Heffner-0/7, Rodriguez-0/4, Munet-0/1, Russell-0/1
Steals: Needleman-3, Russell-1, Bergevin-2, Akiyama-1
Assists: Franscioni-1
Turn-Overs: Rodrgiuez-2, Munet-1, Weiser-2, Franscioni-1, Akiyama-1, Sinclair-1, Bass-1
Field Blocks: Russell-1, Bass-1, Sinclair-1, Weiser-1, Bergevin-1
Exclusions/Drawn: Heffner-2/0, Sinclair-1/0, Woodland-1/0, Bergevin-1/0, Rodriguez-1/0, Munet-1/1, Russell-1/1, Weiser-0/1
Saves/Goals Allowed: Needleman-9/23
Quotes:
Sophomore Paul Bergevin on scoring against the #3 ranked team in the country:
"It felt good. It's a great highlight for my water polo career and when you achieve something against a team like that it's also a big confidence builder."
Game 4: #10 Occidental-9 #1 Whittier-11
Pre-Game Notes:
-This was the second meeting in as many weeks between the two teams. The Poets defeated the Tigers by a 14-3 clip at the Whittier Open on September 6th.
-The Poets entered the game ranked #1 in the latest CWPA Divison III poll and #17 in the Division I Poll.
Highlights:
-Tiger goalie Adam Florsheim eclipsed his career best 18 saves, set the previous day against USC, by blocking 19 shots against the Poets.
-Sophomore Paul Bergevin tallied his first hat trick of the season with a three goal effort, giving him a team high nine goals through the season's first seven games.
Box Score 1st 2nd 3rd 4th TOTAL
Occidental 1 2 5 1 9
Whittier 3 4 3 1 11
Occidental Stats:
Goals/Attempts: Bergevin-3/7, Munet-2/5, Franscioni-2/4, Russell-1/5, Heffner-1/2, Akiyama-0/5, Rodrgiuez-0/6, Sinclair-0/1
Steals: Russell-2, Munet-1, Sinclair-1, Bergevin-1, Weiser-1
Assists: Rodrgiuez-1, Rothwell-1, Sinclair-1, Bass-1
Turn-Overs: Sinclair-2, Weiser-1, Rodriguez-1
Exclusions/Drawn: Munet-1/1, Rodrgiuez-1/0, Weiser-0/1, Rothwell-1/2, Bergevin-1/0, Franscioni-2/0
Saves/Goals Allowed: Florsheim-19/11
Quotes:
Head Coach Larry Zubrin on the team's improvement from the previous week:
"We can see it in the water and we can see it on the scoreboard. We still have a long journey in front of us with plenty of significant challenges, but each time we rise to the challenge we gain confidence and get stronger."
