The University of Redlands men's water polo team battled through a challenging season that resulted in a 13-16 overall record and an 8-6 showing in conference for fifth place, just missing out on the inaugural year of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Postseason Tournament. Five of the team's losses came by a mere combined seven goals to illustrate the competitive parity among the cross-divisional schedule that inspired individual achievements along the way.
The Bulldogs hosted the Inland Empire Classic at the Thompson Aquatic Center in early September and squared off against familiar foe Occidental College in a non-conference tilt. Redlands jumped out to an early 6-1 and later fired off six unanswered goals to top the Tigers by a score of 15-5. Sophomore attacker Spencer Allen (Long Beach, CA) contributed three goals in the win, while sophomore goalkeeper Braeden Shaw (Yorba Linda, CA) stepped up to hold Oxy to only two goals in the final 16 minutes.
Early-season tournament play pitted the Bulldogs against tough competition from NCAA Division I and II throughout the remainder of the IE Classic as well as at the UC Davis Aggie Round-Up. After falling to No. 8 Pepperdine University to start the Northern California trip, the Bulldogs regrouped to defeat Santa Clara University in overtime by a score of 10-9. Senior utility Max Taylor (Henderson, NV) blasted four goals, including two in overtime, to help Redlands top the DI foe.
In late September, Redlands jumped into SCIAC action but struggled to counter Chapman University and Whittier College. However, the Bulldogs' road trip on the 27th appeared to turn the tide, as they recorded their second, overtime win of the season. Amidst an intense back-and-forth battle against Cal Lutheran University, the Bulldogs held a slight 11-9 advantage with 2:53 left in regulation, but the Kingsmen refused to go away and eventually forced overtime. Taylor and junior center-defender Ilan Dayan (Sao Paulo, Brazil) scored one apiece in the first overtime period, but Cal Lutheran matched the offense to send the game into double overtime. With just 49 seconds left on the clock, freshman utility Jasen Swan (Glendora, CA) fired one past the CLU goalkeeper for the slight lead. The Bulldog defense then effectively shut down the Kingsmen to nab the hard-fought 11-10 SCIAC victory. First-year goalkeeper Chris Martinez (Santa Ana, CA) came up big by making 15 stops between the posts.
After two losses by just a two-goal differential each, the Bulldogs came back stronger than before in a 21-3, total-team victory over Caltech. The Maroon and Gray utilized 15 different goal-scorers with Allen, Taylor, junior utility Mitchell Walker (Taylorsville, UT), sophomore center Cooper Krause (Denver, CO) and first-year attacker Aaron White (San Jose, CA) each supplying multi-goal performances for the Bulldogs.
Amidst a busy week of competition, the team hosted a pair of non-conference opponents in Fordham University (NY) and McKendree University (IN), earning split results on the day. The Bulldogs battled the Rams of Fordham to a halftime tie but came up short by a final score of 6-11. With former Bulldog assistant coach Ryan Hall at the helm of McKendree, Redlands enjoyed a mini-reunion on the deck before going to work in the pool and earning a 20-3 victory over the Bearcats. Taylor, Dayan, and sophomore utility Kyle Jackson (Naperville, IL) each provided multiple scores, while White put together an impressive outing with five goals. Martinez and Shaw split time between the posts and made a combined eight saves, with Shaw owning five of them.
The Bulldogs headed to the Gary Troyer Memorial Tournament at Pomona-Pitzer Colleges where they edged Johns Hopkins University (MD) by a score of 11-10. The Maroon and Gray rallied from an early deficit with eight scores over the second and third periods, including three by Taylor. Dayan notched his third goal of the game with 3:24 remaining in the contest to even the count at 10 apiece, while junior attacker Grant Curry (San Diego, CA) fired off the game-winner with 30 seconds left on the clock.
During its second match of the tournament, Redlands stormed out to a 5-1 advantage in the first quarter and never looked back in a comfortable 21-8 win over LaSalle University (MD). The Bulldogs notched six goals in the third and seven in the fourth to run away with the solid win. Taylor led the Maroon and Gray with four goals, while Curry, Krause, junior center Billy Clifford (Redlands, CA), and sophomore attacker Austin Kent (Redlands, CA) each recorded a multi-goal performance.
The Bulldogs stayed in the win column by defeating Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges at the Thompson Aquatic Center in an important SCIAC match. Trailing by one with 5:11 to go in the game, the Bulldogs capitalized on back-to-back power plays for the 9-8 win. The second stanza allowed the Stags to earn a slight 5-4 lead, but a huge stop by Martinez on a late penalty shot provided great momentum for the Bulldogs. By the end of the game, Curry had lit up the scoreboard with five of the Bulldogs' nine goals. Martinez finished with 10 saves between the pipes.
Redlands continued to roll with a 20-12 win over Occidental College in mid-October, with Curry staying hot by unleashing six goals for the Bulldogs. Although Occidental showed more offense in the third and fourth quarters, the Bulldogs matched the Tigers score-for-score to maintain their advantage. Kent made his mark in the fourth quarter by scoring twice in just three minutes.
On October 19, the Bulldogs recorded their sixth-straight victory by edging the University of La Verne in a hard-fought, 14-12 decision. Early in the second stanza, Taylor fired off three-consecutive goals, as junior attacker Ty Williams (Rancho Cucamonga, CA) uncorked back-to-back netters to give the home team an 11-4 halftime lead. Although the Leopards made a late push, Redlands stayed in front for the win, with Taylor pacing the offense with five goals and two assists by the final whistle.
Although the Maroon and Gray's win streak came to an end with back-to-back losses, the Bulldogs rallied to gain redemption over the Whittier Poets. Redlands used a four-goal outburst in the third period to build a lead that it maintained to secure an exciting 10-8 victory. Taylor found the back of the net on four occasions, while Williams provided two goals and two assists in a solid effort.
After the quality win over Whittier, Redlands closed out the regular season with a 2-2 record against SCIAC foes during the early part of November. Among the highlights, Taylor and Curry scored three apiece in the 17-8 thrashing of the Caltech Beavers, while a plethora of young Bulldogs also scored in the total-team victory.
Redlands also faced CMS in a game that would determine the fourth seed of the first-ever SCIAC Postseason Tournament. Following a back-and-forth battle through halftime, the Bulldogs worked to overcome a two-goal hole, but the second-half momentum swung in favor of CMS. Down 6-11 with one quarter to go, the Maroon and Gray used a stingy defense to shut out the Stags in the final eight minutes. But offensively, Redlands mustered only two goals to head home with a tough, 8-11, road loss. Curry and Dayan led the Bulldogs with two goals each. Martinez was huge in the cage, making an impressive 13 saves.
The team returned home for Senior Day against Occidental on October 11. Before taking on the Tigers, the Bulldogs celebrated Taylor's impressive two-year career in a short pregame ceremony. During the competition, Taylor capped off his time in the pool with a team-leading three goals and two assists in the 15-7 victory over the Tigers.
Upon conclusion of the 2017 season, Taylor was named to the All-SCIAC First Team, while Walker was selected to the SCIAC's All-Sportsmanship Team.
In his final season, Taylor led the Bulldogs with 54 goals and 19 assists and garnered a spot on the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) All-America Second Team for a fine finish to his career.
With a challenging slate of opponents to continually push them, the Bulldogs battled through a season of ups and downs with quality wins, individual achievement, and memories that will last a lifetime. With the bulk of the line-up returning next season, Redlands men's water polo holds high hopes for the future of the program under the direction of Head Coach Tom Whittemore.