Photo By Toby Gassner
New De Mandel Aquatics Center at Occidental College Hosts Historic Men's Water Polo Exhibition
Los Angeles, CA — Occidental College Men's Water Polo team hosted Mt. San Antonio College last night for the historic inaugural event in the new De Mandel Aquatic Center. The Tigers, ranked seventh in this week's NCAA Division III coaches poll, have looked forward to the transition from Taylor Pool since 2019.
"Taylor Pool has been our home since 1929," said Occidental men's head coach Jack Stabenfeldt. "We are unbelievably excited to be in our new home at the De Mandel Aquatics Center and appreciate all the people that made tonight possible."
The Occidental Tigers outscored Mt. San Antonio College 15-6. For the night, Oxy had a shot percentage of .455 over Mt. San Antonio's .240. Eleven Tigers scored during the game with the lead scorers being Aiden Cawley, Keegan Klein, and Kellen Radtkey, each getting three, two, and two respectively. The other players that got the ball in the back of the net were Tate Miller, Daniel Cruz, Shea Grosz, Cian Concannon, Nate Fisher, Pete Buinauskas, Dominic Rios, and Jarrod Norton.
Goalkeepers Henry Grady and Cole Ivie defended the Tiger's goal against the Mounties and each had a save percentage of .625. They had a big presence last night, keeping control of the game, and each had five key saves to keep the Tigers in the lead.
"We know there were a lot of people before us that did not get the opportunity to play in this pool," said senior and Team Co-Captain Henry Grady, an economics major at Occidental. "We hope to make them proud."
Next Game: The Tigers begin conference play this Saturday at 11 a.m. vs. The University of La Verne. For the future game schedule and live stream links, go to https://www.oxyathletics.com/.
