The University of Redlands men's water polo completed day two of the UC Davis Aggie Roundup on Sunday with a pair of tough losses. The Bulldogs opened the day against NCAA Division III rival MIT but fell short in a 6-8 decision. Redlands dropped the final contest of the tournament to the hosts by a score of 3-16.
The day started in a back-and-forth battle against the MIT Engineers, with neither team gaining more than a single-goal advantage until late in the third quarter. With the scored tied at four apiece, MIT fired off three-straight scores for a 7-4 lead and the momentum going into the final period. Up to this point, Redlands benefitted from a well-rounded offense that included four different goal-scorers, including junior utility player Mitchell Walker (Taylorsville, UT), sophomore attack player Spencer Allen (Long Beach, CA), junior attack player Ty Williams (Rancho Cucamonga, CA), and freshman attack player Aaron White (San Jose, CA).
Amidst a defensive battle in the fourth frame, Redlands managed to cut the deficit to one with a pair of 6-on-5 goals by Allen and junior center-defender Ilan Dayan (Sao Paulo, Brazil).
However, the Engineers answered back to stretch their lead back to two goals with 56 seconds left in the contest, which allowed insufficient time for Redlands to recover.
Sophomore goalkeeper Braeden Shaw (Yorba Linda, CA) patrolled the Redlands cage with 10 saves in a solid effort.
Against the ninth-ranked Aggies, the Bulldogs battled to a knotted score of three apiece with 5:32 left in the second quarter. White converted a penalty shot to put Redlands on the board before Allen and senior utility player Max Taylor (Henderson, NV) fired off goals to tie it up.
Unfortunately, Davis made the necessary adjustments to hold the Maroon and Gray scoreless for the remainder of the game.
Redlands (2-8) opens Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) action on Saturday, September 23, at home against Chapman University. First sprint is set for 11 a.m. at the Thompson Aquatic Center.