LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The Augustana Vikings men's water polo fell in their opening game of the MPSF Championships on Friday, defeated by the DI No. 4 ranked Stanford Cardinal by a score of 26-1.
 
Stanford began the game with a quick goal 30 seconds in on their way to a 9-0 advantage after eight minutes of action. Declan Hutton was busy in net for the Vikings, blocking two attempts from the Cardinal in the opening quarter. He finished the game with five saves before being subbed out for the second half. Augie put up four shots on offense in the first, but could not find the back of the net.
 
The Vikings began the second quarter with three consecutive stops on defense to slow down the Cardinal's momentum, but were unable to trim the deficit as Stanford out-scored Augustana 6-1 in the frame on their way to a 15-1 halftime lead. Hutton notched the first and only goal of the game for the Vikings, charging up to the Cardinal's side of the pool and sending one in on an assist from Oskar Bannister with just 10 seconds left in the period.
 
The No. 4 ranked Cardinal pushed their differential out to 19 points after a 5-0 advantage in the third and added seven more in the fourth to close out the game with a 26-1 final.

Stevan Rasic led the way for the Vikings in shots, finishing with seven. Jake Fisher added three. On defense, Bannister and Lucas Osborn each swiped two steals, while Henry Sothern had three saves in the second half for Augie.

The Vikings drop to 12-6 on the year with the loss. Augie will now shift their focus to Penn State Behrend on Saturday, November 19. The winner will advance to the Eastern championship to be played on Sunday. Start time is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. CST.