COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Augustana College men's water polo (1-2, 0-0) is spending the weekend at the U.S. Air Force Academy for the Air Force Rare Air Invite, which began on Saturday for Augie with matches against Ottawa University Arizona and Wagner College (4-10, 1-1). After defeating Ottawa by six, 19-13, in the opening match, Augie fell in a tight contest against Wagner, 14-11.
GAME ONE - Augie 19-13 OUAZ
Inside the Box Score
- Malte Faltstrom led Augustana in goals with five and tied for the team lead in points with five.
- Ian Palmroos tied Faltstrom in points with his four goals and one assist.
- Lawson Soukup made six saves on the 19 shots he faced.
How it Happened
Ottawa jumped out to a 3-2 lead in the first quarter, but the Vikings scored three straight to end the first up 5-3. Their scoring streak extended into the second quarter with another three goals to increase their lead to 8-3. Ottawa was able to score three of the quarter's final five goals, but Augie still held a comfortable 10-6 lead at the halfway point.
Ottawa continued to cut the deficit in the third quarter, outscoring Augie 4-2 throughout the period to head into the final frame with the score at 12-10, still in favor of the Vikings. After each scoring once in the fourth, Augie used a 5-1 scoring run to shut down any chance of a comeback. Both squads score once more before time expired, with the scoreboard reading 19-13 in favor of Augustana.
GAME TWO - WAG 14-11 Augie
Inside the Box Score
- Rhys Lomax led Augustana in scoring in game two with his three.
- Uros Ramic also had a multi-goal game for the Vikings with two.
- Ben Symington had both of Augie's assists in the match.
How it Happened
The first two goals of the game belonged to Lomax, who quickly put Augie up by a pair. Wager cut that lead in half, but a goal by Ronin Araucto to end the first and one by Ramic to start the second built Augie's lead to three, 4-1. A pair of Wagner goals about 30 seconds apart brought them within one, and, after Ramic's second score briefly prolonged the Augie lead, another quick pair of Wagner goals tied the match at 5-5. Augustana managed to score two of the second's final three goals to take a 7-6 lead into the break.
Wagner came out firing in the third, scoring five straight goals to jump ahead of Augie, 11-7. The quarter ended with Lomax's hattrick goal, but Augie still had work to do in the fourth down 11-8. Both squads scored in the opening minutes of the final frame, but consecutive Wagner goals at 5:51 and 4:46 gave them some insurance as they now led 14-9. Augie did manage to get two goals back in the final 3:03 of play, but it proved too little too late as they ultimately fell 14-11.
Up Next
Augie concludes their trip to Colorado on Sunday, Sept. 27, with another two games. At 9:20 a.m. MST they play Occidental before facing Biola at 12:30 p.m. MST.
Follow the Vikings
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Augustana men's water polo by following the team on Twitter at @augieathletics, on Facebook at Augustana Vikings Athletics, and on Instagram at @augiewaterpolo.
