The University of Redlands men's water polo team embarked upon the 2016 season by taking on two formidable foes at the UCSD Triton Invitational on Saturday. The Bulldogs put up an impressive showing but came up just shy of the win against Loyola Marymount University in an 11-12 decision. The Maroon and Gray also squared off against No. 11 Pepperdine University in the afternoon match, falling to the Waves by a score of 3-13.
Against the LMU Lions, Redlands forced a knotted score through the first period and later held a slight 7-6 advantage at the midway point of the match. During the first half, the Bulldogs gained three goals from sophomore center Billy Clifford (Redlands, CA) and two from junior center-defender Max Taylor (Henderson, NV).
LMU held Redlands to only one netter in the third frame to secure a 9-8 advantage with eight minutes to go.
After the Lions stretched their lead to 10-8 early in the fourth, the Maroon and Gray clawed its way back to tie it up with back-to-back goals from junior center Matt Shippen (Santa Maria, CA) and sophomore driver Ty Williams (Rancho Cucamonga, CA). The teams traded netters to force another tie, as junior driver Kevin Chapa (Carlsbad, CA) fired one past the LMU goalkeeper.
However, the Lions regained the lead and held on for the close victory in the final three minutes.
Senior goalkeeper Chris Sekula (LaGrange, IL) picked up right where he left off last season, racking up 10 saves in a solid performance.
The afternoon game saw the 11th-ranked squad from Pepperdine break an early 2-2 tie with 11 unanswered goals to stay comfortably in front.
Senior driver Zac Polmanteer (Long Beach, CA) and Hartwig scored Redlands' early goals, before freshman driver Kyle Jackson (Naperville, IL) found the back of the net late in the contest.
Redlands (0-2) continues its challenging slate of NCAA Division I opponents on Sunday with the UCLA Invite. The Bulldogs take on UCLA at 9 a.m., followed by Stanford at 1 p.m. Both games take place at Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego.