Men’s Water Polo competed in New York on Saturday, Nov. 8, falling to No. 5 Fordham 18-4 before defeating Wagner 18-17 later in the day.
The Bison entered the Bronx having won two of their last five games, all of which were on the road. On the other hand, the Rams went into Saturday as one of the best teams in the entire nation, sporting a 19-3 overall record and 9-0 conference record. The Orange and Blue fell to Fordham earlier in the season, 24-13, at Kinney Natatorium.
The Bison struggled to find any offense against the Rams, scoring just four goals on 27 shots. Aleksa Stefanovic ’26 was one of the Orange and Blue’s scorers, as he netted his 80th goal of the season. Tyler Hedblad ’28, Jovan Udovicic ’28, and Ian Shultz ’26 scored the other three. David Dumitru ’27 tallied nine saves and four steals, but the Rams’ offense proved to be too much as they found the back of the cage 18 times.
Just five hours later, the Bison took on Wagner in Staten Island. The Seahawks were coming off a rough stretch, having lost four of their last five games, but competed well against Fordham the day before and blew out Mount St. Mary’s earlier in the day.
Both teams kept it close throughout the first half, but the Orange and Blue began to pull away in the third quarter, leading 13-9 after a goal from Hedblad. The Seahawks rallied back, however, scoring five consecutive goals to take the lead back from the Bison. Greg Nordheim’s ’27 shot rattled the cage at the end of the third quarter to tie the match at 14-14. Both teams traded goals during the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, but a surge from the Bison allowed them to seize the lead as Stefanovic and Jack Dillane ’28 scored within a minute of each other. Wagner was able to find a late goal, but the Orange and Blue held on to win the regular season finale 18-17. Hedblad was the leading scorer for the Bison, netting five goals, as Dumitru continued to be a wall, recording eight saves.
Men’s Water Polo finished conference play at 6-6, which earned them the 4th seed in the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference. The Bison will once again take on Wagner, the 5th seed, on Friday, Nov. 21, in the Bronx.
