Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 ERIE, Pa. -- The Augustana Vikings men's water polo team will play for third place at the DIII Eastern Championships on Sunday, October 23 after splitting a pair of games on day one of the tournament.

No. 3 seed Augustana defeated No. 6 seed Connecticut in round one by a final of 20-9 to place them in the semifinals. The Vikings jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead after a quarter of play and doubled up the Camels in the second quarter 6-3 on their way to an 11-4 halftime advantage. The two teams played a near-even third quarter, with Augie holding a slight one-goal margin to build upon their lead. The Vikings tallied four fourth-quarter goals and allowed just one score to the Camels in the final frame to take the game by double digits.

Colin McDowell led the team with five goals in the opening matchup, followed by Oskar Bannister with four. The victory is the second for Augustana over Connecticut this season, outscoring the Camels 43-19 over two games.

The Vikings then took on the No. 9 ranked Johns Hopkins Blue Jays in the semifinal game later in the afternoon. After trailing by just a goal after the first eight minutes of action, Augie put together a big second quarter, outscoring Johns Hopkins 7-2 to take a 10-6 lead at halftime. The Blue Jays doubled up the Vikings in the third quarter, cutting the differential to just two at 12-10 heading into the final frame. A 5-2 advantage for Johns Hopkins put them ahead by one, eventually preventing off a last-second score from the Vikings to hang on for the 15-14 triumph.

McDowell tallied five goals to lead the Vikings for the second straight game, while Joseph Addison and Mark Addison each added three.

Augustana's record sits at 10-5 following the 1-1 day. The team will take on Austin at 9:40 a.m. CST on Sunday for third place.