Over the weekend, the men’s water polo team battled the best the country has to offer. The Tigers came up short, dropping a tough match to No. 3 USC before falling to No. 1 Stanford, No. 9 UC Irvine and No. 13 Pacific in the UC Irvine Invitational. Princeton did not come home from the weekend empty-handed, however, as it defeated Redlands by a 15-12 margin on the final day of the tournament.
In preparation for the invitational, No. 14 Princeton (8-9 overall, 4-1 Collegiate Water Polo Association) faced the Trojans at McDonald Swim Stadium, where USC has a home winning streak of 35 games. The Tigers were shut out for the first 16 minutes, as USC netminder Joel Dennerley dazzled in allowing the Trojans to reach an 11-0 lead by the end of the first half.
Princeton didn’t get on the board until three minutes into the third quarter with a blast from freshman center defender Billy Tifft. At the end of the third stanza, the score was 14-1 in favor of USC. The Orange and Black netted two goals in the fourth, but it was too little, too late : The match came to a close with a final score of 14-3. Princeton’s scorers were Tifft, freshman attack Tim Wenzlau and junior attack Peter Schulam.
The USC match was a great way to prepare the Tigers for their match against the No. 1 team in the nation, as Princeton faced Stanford in the first game of the UCI Invitational. The competition, held last Saturday and Sunday, hosted 16 of the best teams in the nation, including familiar foes No. 18 Bucknell and No. 19 Navy.
The Cardinals took it to Princeton in the first eight minutes of the game, shutting out the Tigers’ offensive unit completely. Stanford went up, 3-0, and it put away another three goals in the second period before the Tigers got on the board. Trailing 6-1 at the start of the second half, Princeton picked up its offense, but was still outscored, 8-5, in the final 16 minutes of play.
Senior attack Douglas Wigley led the way for the Tigers, netting two goals in the match, while senior goalkeeper Scottie Hvidt had 16 saves. Hvidt is also a sports columnist for the Daily Princetonian.
After the loss to Stanford, Princeton faced host No. 9 UC Irvine, which had also dropped its first match of the invitational. The Tigers were again shut out in the first eight minutes of the matchup, but Princeton’s defense held the Anteaters to only two goals in the first frame.
A strong second period for Irvine gave it a 7-1 lead going into the locker room for halftime. While the Tigers fought back in the second half, the defense could do little to hold back the Anteaters, who outscored Princeton, 8-6, in the final two periods.
Senior utlity Mark Zalewski and sophomore attack Chris Cottrell led the Tigers on offense, putting up two points each. Hvidt put up 11 saves between the pipes.
The loss to Irvine pitted Princeton against No. 13 Pacific, which came out hunting. Princeton’s defense was unable to put up the necessary stops, letting Pacific go up, 4-1, at the end of the first quarter.
Though Princeton outscored Pacific in the second half, the Tigers could not overcome a lopsided first stanza. Pacific turned in six goals in the first half but only one in the final 16 minutes, evidence of Princeton’s defense clamping down and getting settled.
Zalewski led the Tigers again in scoring, putting two goals away in the match, while junior goalkeeper Mike Merlone notched eight saves in the game.
The final game of the weekend came against Redlands, a team that made the game closer than the Tigers would have desired. After 16 minutes, Princeton was hanging on to one-point lead, mounting a 7-6 advantage. The Tigers dug deep, though, outshooting and outscoring Redlands in the final 16 minutes and giving Princeton a 15-12 win to wrap up the tournament.
Senior left attack Eric Vreeland had five goals in the match, the most of any Tiger in a single game over the weekend. Merlone picked up eight saves in the win.
Princeton now has a few days to rest before gearing up to play in its final regular- season matchups. The Tigers will face George Washington, Johns Hopkins and Navy in the coming weekend. The outcome of these important matches will determine the seeding for the upcoming Southern Championships.
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