The men's water polo team opened their season with a two game set at the Whittier Open on Saturday.  #9 Oxy lost to #1 Whittier 14-3 in the opener and then fell 13-9 in a hard fought match against Division II Fresno Pacific. 

Game 1: #9 Occidental-3 #1 Whittier-14

 Pre-game Notes:

-This was the season opener for both teams.  Whittier entered ranked #1 nationally in the latest CWPA Division III Poll.  Occidental entered ranked #9.

-The two teams met last on Nov 16^th 2013 in the first round of the SCIAC Tournament.  The Poets defeated the Tigers by a score of 14-9 and went on to win the 2013 SCIAC Title. Oxy would go on to defeat the University of La Verne to capture 7^th place in the SCIAC.

Highlights:

-The Poets jumped out to a 5-0 first quarter lead behind goals from Christian Sook (2) Goran Mataic, Masamilliano Mariarchi, and Nicholas Beavers. 

-Oxy got on the board when senior co-captain Sam Akiyama (Aptos) converted a penalty shot early in the 2^nd quarter.

-Trailing 7-1 at the half, sophomore Matt Munet (Brea) scored to cut the lead back to five, before Whittier went on another five goal run to take a 10-2 lead into the 4^th.

-Sophomore Paul Bergevin (Los Altos) scored the Tigers only other goal in the 4^th quarter.

-Oxy made just 3 of 29 shots on goal and converted 2 of 10 power-plays.

Game Stats:

Box Score              1^st             2^nd           3^rd            4^th            TOTAL

Occidental           0               1               1               1               3

Whittier                5               2               5               2               14

Occidental Stats:

Goals/Shots: Akiyama-1/8, Munet-1/2, Bergevin-1/2, Rodriguez-0/5, Weister-0/3, Sinclair-0/2, Russell-0/2, Bass-0/2, Mills-0/2, Woodland-0/1

Steals: Needleman-4, Rodriguez-1, Weiser-1, Akiyama-1, Woodland-1

Assists: Akiyama-1, Sinclair-1

Turn-Overs: Sinclair-3, Rodriguez-2, Woodland-2, Mills-2, Munet-1, Russell-1, Rothwell-1, Bergevin-1

Exclusions/Drawn: Heffner-0/4, Bergevin-1/2, Rodriguez-0/2, Rothwell-1/1, Akiyama-2/1, Needleman-1/0, Munet-1/0, Weiser-1/0, Bass-1/0

Field Blocks: Heffner-1, Bergevin-1, Munet-1

Saves/Goals Allowed: Needleman-9/14

Quotes:

Head Coach Larry Zubrin, on his teams opening day performance:

"I was very impressed with how our first and second year players stepped up to the challenge.  Our entire bench was made up entirely of freshmen today, and they all had the opportunity to provide a significant contribution.  It was an important step forward as we re-build the program."

First year standout Matt Weiser (Winnekta, IL) on his debut as a Tiger:

"It was an eye-opener.  I think I learned more in my first four minutes of the game than I did in four years of high school.

Game 2: #9 Occidental-9 DII Fresno Pacific-13

Pre-Game Notes:

-#9 Oxy entered the game with an 0-1 record in 2014 having lost their opener to #1 Whittier 14-3 earlier in the day.  FPU was also 0-1 after losing to #5 Chapman University 11-8 earlier in the tournament.

-The two teams last met on September 28^th 2013 in Fresno, where the Sunbirds defeated the Tigers 11-10 in overtime.

-Oxy was only able to suit up 13 of 21 players, with 8 Tigers sitting out with injury.

Highlights:

-Oxy scored on nine of 28 shots, but continued to struggle with their power-plays, going 1-5 on extra man situations.

-Six different Tigers scored including freshmen Dominic Rodriguez (Imperial Beach) and Taylor Russell (Capistrano Beach), each scoring their first collegiate goals.

-Oxy was out-drawn 10-5 in exclusions, the differential was 9-2 heading into the final quarter.

Game Stats:

Box Score                                1^st             2^nd           3^rd            4^th            Total

Occidental                             2               2               2               3               9

FPU                                             4               3               2               4               13

Occidental Stats:

Goals/Shots: Munet-3/3, Heffner-2/4, Akiyama-1/6, Bergevin-1/6, Russell-1/2, Rodriguez-1/1, Needleman-0/1, Weiser-0/2, Rothwell-0/1, Sinclair-0/1, Bass-0/1

Steals: Heffner-2, Needleman-1, Russell-1, Bergevin-1, Akiyama-1

Assists: Sinclair-4, Munet-2, Russell-1, Bergevin-1, Heffner-1

Turn-Overs: Heffner-3, Sinclair-2, Weiser-2, Munet-1, Bergevin-1, Akiyama-1

Exclusions/Drawn: Heffner-3/1, Bergevin-2/2, Russell-2/1, Rodriguez-1/0, Rothwell-2/0, Russell-0/1

Field Blocks: Bergevin-1

Saves/Goals Allowed: Needleman 12/13 

Quotes:

Senior Nick Heffner (San Diego) on the teams opening day performance:

"It had a lot to be desired, but we're building a whole new team this season.  Half the players in the water today weren't here last year.  I think we're already better off now than we were last season. 

Head Coach Larry Zubrin on missing eight players due to injury:

"There's no question that a few of the guys that were sitting out today could have made a difference, but at the same time, it's really exciting to see some of these freshmen step in and perform well.  Getting them more opportunities to develop is going to be pivotal to our team's success moving forward."