Brown University
Harvard
Men's Water Polo Wins CWPA Northern Division Championship in Sudden Death over Harvard, 14-13
11/8/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Water Polo
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Sophomore Tyler Kirchberg scored 2:15 into sudden death overtime to give top-seeded Brown University men's water polo a 14-13 win over No. 2 seed Harvard University in the title game of the 2015 CWPA Northern Division Championship on Sunday afternoon at the Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center.
After junior goalkeeper Luke Weiser (Los Alamitos, Calif.) made a pair of saves to start the sudden death session, junior Yahel Murvitz-Lahav (Tel Aviv, Israel) found Kirchberg (Orinda, Calif.) who buried a shot from the right wing to lift the Bears (23-6) to the divisional crown over the visiting Crimson (19-9). The two sides entered the game tied for No. 12 in the national rankings.
Brown will now open play as the No. 1 seed at the CWPA Championship and will begin competition at the tournament on Friday, Nov. 20 at 3:20 p.m. at MIT's Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center in Cambridge, Mass.
The Bears claimed their third Northern Division title under ninth-year head coach Felix Mercado after winning the tournament in 2014 and 2009. Brown beat Harvard, 9-6, last year to claim the crown.
Murvitz-Lahav registered three goals and two assists, and Kirchberg recorded three goals and one assist while senior Matty Gallas (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and junior Jake Wyatt (Corona Del Mar, Calif.) each posted two goals and two assists.
Junior Warren Smith (Dallas, Texas) contributed two goals and an assist while senior Will Klein (Pasadena, Calif.) and sophomore Rico Burke (San Mateo, Calif.) each added a single goal.
In net, Weiser compiled 16 saves, making two saves in overtime and another two stops in the sudden death period.
The Bears never trailed in the contest though the Crimson tied the match on six occasions including with three seconds left in regulation and one second left in the second part of overtime.
With Brown leading 9-8 entering the fourth quarter, Kirchberg scored the stanza's first goal from the right wing off a corner throw from Wyatt with 1:28 remaining to give the Bears a 10-8 edge. Harvard persevered in the final minute of regular time, netting goals with 49 seconds and three seconds to play to force overtime.
Weiser blocked a pair of shots to open bonus play before Murvitz-Lahav scored off a feed from Burke to put Brown up 11-10. A goal from Burke with 33 seconds left in the first half of overtime gave the Bears a 12-10 edge before Harvard scored with 15 seconds to go in the frame.
Wyatt pushed Brown's advantage to 13-11 with a well-placed lob shot, but the Crimson responded again, pulling within 13-12 with 1:05 on the clock and sending the game into sudden death with a goal with one second left.
Weiser made two more stops in sudden death to setup Kirchberg's game winner.
Brown opened the game with a 3-0 lead off goals from Gallas, Wyatt, and Smith and still led 3-2 after the first quarter. Harvard tied it at 3-3, but tallies from Murvitz-Lahav and Smith inside of the second quarter's final 52 seconds gave the hosts a 5-3 lead at halftime.
The two teams combined for nine goals in the third quarter with the Crimson tying the game at 6-6 despite a goal from Klein. Markers from Murvitz-Lahav, Gallas, and Kirchberg gave Brown its 9-8 edge entering the final frame of regulation.
The Bears beat the Crimson for the fourth time this season after pulling out a 10-9 win in overtime on the road on Sept. 19, winning 16-12 at home on Oct. 11, and gaining a 13-8 victory in the Ivy Championship title game at Princeton on Oct. 18.
Brown 14, Harvard 13 (SDOT)
Brown....................... 3…2…4…1…3…1…14
Harvard..................... 2…1…5…2…3…0…13
Brown Goals: Kirchberg 3, Murvitz-Lahav 3, Gallas 2, Smith 2, Wyatt 2, Klein, Burke.
Brown Saves: Weiser 16.
