CLAREMONT, Calif. -- The Augustana Vikings men's water polo team split its final day at the Gary Troyer Tournament in Southern California on Saturday, defeating the Biola Eagles in a sudden death overtime session by a score of 11-10 before falling to the No. 4 ranked Chapman Panthers by a final of 15-14.
In game one vs. Biola, the two teams alternated the first six goals, each scoring three times to bring a 3-3 deadlock into the second.
Alden Brinkmeier notched the first tally of the day for Augie before
Stevan Rasic grabbed the final two of the frame. The Vikings and Eagles played to another even period in the second, this time scoring twice apiece. Biola secured the first point of the quarter, but the Vikings went out in front for the first time following back-to-back strikes by
Cole Faux and
Rhys Lomax. An Eagles goal with 98 seconds left in the half drew the teams even once again at 5-5 entering halftime.
After over four minutes of scoreless play to begin the third, Brinkmeier moved Augie back out in front with his second tally of the game. Biola answered with two in a row in the final two minutes to claim a one-point lead with just eight minutes remaining. Rasic added a point to the Vikings' total to begin the fourth, but Augustana again found themselves behind after the Eagles took a 9-8 advantage with 1:14 to go. After a defensive stop both ways, the Vikings faced one final attempt to even the score and saw a shot by
Declan Hutton find the back of the net. The two teams ended regulation tied at 9-9.
Neither team mustered a score in the first three-minute overtime session. Biola claimed the first lead of the next frame with a tally with 1:14 remaining, but Faux answered with a point 22 seconds later. A 10-10 score moved the two teams into a golden goal format.
Another empty three-minute period followed, but the game did not make it to another as Rasic ended the battle with a goal at the 1:13 mark to give Augie an 11-10 win. He finished the contest with four goals on eight shots, while Lomax and Faux each contributed two. Hutton stopped 19 shots in net.
In the finale against the No. 4 ranked Panthers, the Vikings found themselves down early after five of the first six goals went in favor of the opponent.
Oskar Bannister countered a goal from the Panthers to begin the game and make it a 1-1 score before
Ian Palmroos' tally with 30 seconds remaining made it a 5-2 score entering the second quarter. The Panthers added two more to the differential with a 4-2 advantage in the second and led 9-4 at the halftime break.
The Vikings inched closer with their highest scoring quarter of the game, posting a 6-4 advantage in the third. Rasic and Brinkmeier each scored twice through the first eight minutes of the second half, while Palmroos and Faux also added one apiece. Chapman notched two of the first three in the fourth, but Augie answered with a 3-0 scoring spurt to cut the deficit to one. The Vikings were unable to get the ball back and the Panthers held on for the one-point win.
Rasic led the way with three goals.
With the split, Augustana now sits at 4-5 on the year. The team will be back in action next weekend for an MPSF weekend in Texas.
