In La Jolla, California, Men’s Water Polo competed against four California teams, finishing the event with a 2-2 record.

The first matchup was against UC Merced, who came out booming, scoring their first goal 40 seconds in. The Bison immediately responded with the next four goals, setting the tone for the rest of the game. Jovan Udovicic ’28 scored first for the Bison and Shay Gillearn’s ’25 goal that followed gave the team the lead. Tyler Hedblad ’28 scored twice within 25 seconds to make the game 4-1.

UC Merced managed to close the gap to 5-3, but the Bison continued to shine offensively. Matt Ryckman ’25 and Ned Smith ’28 each scored late in the first quarter to push the lead ahead. 

To start the second quarter, Ryckman recorded his second goal and Hedblad recorded his third. The Bison led 11-5 at the half. 

Keepers David Dumitru ’27 and Mateo Herrera ’26 both saw time in the pool. Dumitru finished with five saves and Herrera with four. Gillearn led with five goals in the Bison’s 22-10 victory against UC Merced. 

In their second matchup of the day against UC San Diego, the tournament host, the Bison lost 16-3. Ryckman, Aleksa Stefanovic ’26 and Hedblad each contributed goals. Dumitru tallied nine saves throughout the game. 

The tournament continued the next morning with the Bison facing Redlands. Right off the bat, the Bison took control of the game. Sean Tunnicliff ’27, Hasan Mogultay ’25 and Hedblad each scored two goals in the first quarter. Redlands made impressive efforts to get back at the Bison and even managed to cut Bucknell’s lead to one goal. The score sat at 9-8 going into the second quarter. 

The Bulldogs only scored once during the third quarter. Mogultay, Tunnicliff and Gillearn all managed to score. Stefanovic finished it off with two goals and the Bison ended with a 14-11 victory.

In the final game of the tournament, the Bison faced #10 Long Beach State. Ten different Bison scored, including Jack Dillane ’28, Udovicic, Jack Murad ’26 and Stefanovic. At the half, Long Beach State led 13-4.

The Orange and Blue opened up the second half on a 7-6 run. Despite their best efforts, the Bison were never able to catch up. The game ended 24-12.

Men’s Water Polo heads next to the Princeton Invite this weekend.