PRINCETON, N.J. – No. 11 UC San Diego men's water polo lost a pair of games Saturday at the Princeton Invitational, falling against No. 14 Fordham and the fifth-ranked host Tigers.
The game against Princeton was tight the whole way with the home team grabbing a 12-11 decision. The score versus Fordham was 13-5 in favor of the Rams.
Overall, UC San Diego went 2-2 at the tourney. Friday, the Tritons defeated Wagner and Iona. They are now 5-3 on the season.
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HOW IT HAPPENED vs. PRINCETON
It was tied 6-6 at halftime after Princeton won the first half 4-2 and UC San Diego returned the favor in the second with a 4-2 goal advantage.
The Tigers out-scored the Tritons 4-1 in the third period, giving them a sizable 10-7 lead heading into the final quarter.
In the fourth period, UC San Diego struck first when Bennett Axline netted a power play goal just over a minute in. Following a Princeton goal at 6:12 that made it 11-8 Tigers, the Tritons responded with two consecutive goals to get within one. Eamon Hennessey tallied the first at 4:15 on a power play and Lucas Romaguera followed at 1:12, making it 11-10 Princeton
With 49 seconds on the clock, the Tigers scored the eventual game-winner, giving them a 12-10 lead.
Axline scored his second power play goal of the game with 33 ticks left, but the Tigers were able to run out the clock to cement the victory.
Axline contributed a game-high four goals. Hennessey, Romaguera, and freshman Christian Hammonds each scored twice for the Tritons.
For the Tigers, Finn LeSleur finished with a hat trick.
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HOW IT HAPPENED vs. FORDHAM
UC San Diego had a 2-0 lead after the opening quarter but Fordham out-scored the Tritons 13-3 the rest of the way. The second period was all Rams as they scored all six goals in the quarter.
Landon Akerstrom and Romaguera accounted for four of UC San Diego's goals with two apiece. Felipe Ferreira had the other score.
Luka Silvestri and Andras Toth each had hat tricks for Fordham.
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TRITON GOAL SCORERS AT THE TOURNEY
Landon Akerstrom, 9
Lucas Romaguera, 8
Trevor Moore, 6
Bennett Axline, 5
Rhys Bugelli, 4
Eamon Hennessey, 4
Mason Presley, 4
Felipe Ferreira, 3
Christian Hammonds, 3
Brendon Fezzey, 2
Reef Lippa, 2
Luca Rago, 2
Augi Macchi, 1
Mark Laurlund, 1
Lachlan Rossi, 1
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TRITON TIDBITS
• Transfer Mark Laurlund scored his first Triton goal Friday against Iona.
• The five goals scored against Fordham are a season low for the Tritons.
• Lucas Romaguera has scored at least once in seven of eight games and is currently riding a six-game scoring streak.
• Trevor Moore had a hat trick in both of Friday's games.
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BATTLE OF THE KINGS COMING UP
The highly anticipated Battle of the Kings between UC San Diego and Loyola Marymount is set for Wed., Sept. 25, 6 p.m. at Canyonview Aquatic Center. The venue will be full (first full week that students are back on campus) and we advise purchasing tickets early through the Triton Box Office.
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UP NEXT
UC San Diego heads to the MPSF Invitational Sept. 20-22 at Cal.
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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
