Bulldog Men's Water Polo Splits Doubleheader on a Busy Saturday

Bulldog Men's Water Polo Splits Doubleheader on a Busy Saturday

The University of Redlands men's water polo team welcomed the Beavers of Caltech to the Thompson Aquatic Center for their first game on Saturday, November 9, for a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) game before traveling to Cal Baptist University for a non-conference tilt this evening.

Redlands came out of the gate all cylinders firing, to go on a 6-3 run through the first eight minutes of action. Senior center-defender Carl Matthews (Yorba Linda, CA) got the spurt going with a power-play score. Less than a minute later, senior attacker Carter Kerwin (Bakersfield) found the back of the net to go up 2-1 at the 6:17-minute mark.

Krause knocked down two more goals in the period, while junior attacker Chris Frejlach (Rancho Cucamonga, CA) and sophomore center-defender Bradley Clinton (Long Beach, CA) added to the firepower with a goal each.

However, the Beavers inched their way back scoring three in the second while holding Redlands to only one goal. The Maroon and Gray still held a slight lead entering halftime, 7-6.

The teams remained neck-and-neck through most of the third period. However, with time winding down, senior attacker Kyle Jackson (Naperville, IL) swiped a steal and swam it back to the other end of the pool. He found senior attacker Spencer Allen (Long Beach, CA) for the score with just two seconds left on the clock to go up 11-9 entering the final quarter.

After the Bulldogs built a 15-9 lead off of two goals from Kerwin and one from Jackson and Frejlach, Redlands shuffled the lineup and relied on its young core to close out the victory. First-year attacker
Jesse Kimie-Brylka
(Soquel, CA) found first-year attacker Nathan Rucker-Jensen (Malibu, CA) to end the game on a high note for a 16-11 victory.

Redlands then traveled Riverside to take on Cal Baptist University in the nightcap. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, the script was flipped that evening, falling by a final score of 7-13.

The Lancers got off to a good start, putting the Maroon and Gray in a 0-4 hole through the first period.

However, Redlands found its offensive rhythm in the second as senior Reece Koe (Camarillo, CA) put one through the posts at the 6:47-minute mark. After an exclusion on CBU, first-year attacker Drake Moody (Camarillo, CA) found sophomore attacker Tor Cole (Malibu, CA) for the powerplay goal. Just 30 seconds later, after another Lancer turnover, first-year center Michael Driscoll (Escondido, CA) found the back of the net to pull within one at 3-4 with 4:47 left in the second.

Unfortunately, momentum swung back in favor of CBU, who took a 7-3 lead into halftime. That energy continued in the third as well,  giving the Lancers an 11-4 advantage headed to the last quarter.

First-year utility player Ryan Pilotte (Townson, MD) made his presence known in the final period, with two consecutive goals, the first assisted by Koe, while first-year center defender Michael Maher (Fremont, CA) dished out the second. But the Lancers had built a large enough lead to ultimately hand the Bulldogs a 7-13 loss.

Redlands (13-13, 6-6 SCIAC) heads to La Verne for a SCIAC game, next Wednesday, November 13 for a 4 p.m. game.