The University of Redlands men's water polo team took to the road for a pair of matches on Saturday. First, the Bulldogs battled it out with Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) foe, Whittier College, and then they faced Cal Baptist University in a non-conference showdown in Riverside. Unfortunately, the Maroon and Gray ended up on the losing side of two very close outcomes. Redlands fell to the Poets, 4-6, in a defensive showdown before dropping an 11-13 decision to the Lancers.
Against the Poets, the teams traded possessions and opportunities throughout the closely-contested game, with the home team coming up with the difference in the final frame. Senior utility player Max Taylor (Henderson, NV) and sophomore attack player Spencer Allen (Long Beach, CA) each scored once in the opening stanza to make it a 2-2 tally.
The second quarter saw back-and-forth exchanges amidst a one-goal production for Whittier.
Down 2-3 at the break, the Bulldogs answered with a 2-1 run of their own, as junior attack player Grant Curry (San Diego, CA) and Taylor found the back of the net.
But, the Poets responded in the fourth while keeping Redlands off the board to provide the difference in the hard-fought contest.
Freshman goalkeeper Chris Martinez (Santa Ana, CA) patrolled the Redlands cage by making 11 saves.
In the Bulldogs' second match of the day, the Lancers jumped out to a 3-0 lead, forcing the Maroon and Gray to play catch-up from early on. Freshman attack player Aaron White (San Jose, CA) and junior utility player Mitchell Walker (Taylorsville, UT) answered the call on back-to-back possessions to make it a one-score game after one period.
For the next two frames, the teams were dead-even in their offensive output, as each squad tallied seven goals. Curry and freshman utility player Jasen Swan (Glendora, CA) led the charge for the Maroon and Gray, as they each fired off two netters during this stretch.
Still trailing by one, the Bulldogs faced the final quarter with work still to do against the Lancers. Despite quality goals by Swan and Taylor, Redlands never fully recovered the deficit en route to the 11-13 loss.
Martinez remained steady between the posts, as he registered 10 saves and one steal.
Redlands (3-11, 1-2 SCIAC) returns to the friendly confines of the Thompson Aquatic Center on Wednesday, October 4, when it hosts Caltech for a SCIAC match at 7 p.m.