Brown University
MIT
No. 14 Men's Water Polo Defeats No. 9 Harvard, MIT in NWPC Play
10/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Water Polo
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – No. 14 Brown University men's water polo defeated No. 9 Harvard University, 9-7, after topping MIT, 14-7, in a pair of Northeast Water Polo Conference games on Saturday at Blodgett Pool and the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center respectively on Saturday.
The Bears (12-6, 4-1 NWPC) earned their first win over a top-10 opponent this season against the host Crimson (12-3, 2-2 NWPC) after beating the host Engineers (4-7, 0-4 NWPC), the No. 6-ranked team in Division III.
For the day, senior Luke Irwin (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) and junior Tyler Kirchberg (Orinda, Calif.) led Brown with four goals apiece between the two games. Senior Jake Wyatt (Corona Del Mar, Calif.) recorded four assists against MIT and then three goals against Harvard.
Next, Brown plays in a pair of exhibition contests on Sunday, Oct. 16 against Toronto and Dartmouth prior to competing in four games at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational from Friday, Oct. 21 to Sunday, Oct. 23.
Game 1 – No. 14 Brown 14, MIT 7
Irwin and junior Rico Burke (San Mateo, Calif.) each scored three goals to lead No. 14 Brown past MIT, 14-7, at the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center on Saturday morning in its first game of the day.
The Bears built an 8-2 lead in the first half and used a 6-1 run spanning the first and second halves to stake themselves to a 14-6 edge against the host Engineers.
Juniors Tommy Bush (Lafayette, Calif.) and Kirchberg and freshman Hudson Rawlings (Murrieta, Calif.) each netted two goals. Sophomore Santiago Nunez (Miami, Fla.) and freshman Armen Deirmenjian (Beverly Hills, Calif.) added one goal apiece.
Wyatt distributed a team-high four assists alongside two steals while sophomore Spencer Carroll (Newport Beach, Calif.) dished out three assists.
In net, sophomore goalkeeper Will Renken (South Pasadena, Calif.) made five saves, and senior net-minder Luke Weiser (Los Alamitos, Calif.) tacked on two stops.
Brown opened the game with a 3-0 lead behind a pair of tallies from Burke and a marker from Bush. After an MIT goal, the Bears used another 3-0 run to take a 6-1 edge with goals from Nunez, Rawlings, and Irwin. The visitors then took a 6-2 lead into the second quarter.
Irwin started the second quarter with back-to-back goals to give Brown its largest lead of the first half at 8-2. The Engineers countered with a 3-0 streak to pull within 8-5 before a Kirchberg goal gave the Bears a 9-5 advantage at the half.
The Bears took a 12-6 lead through three quarters, outscoring the Engineers, 3-1, in the third frame. Burke, Kirchberg, and Bush provided the goals for Brown.
Brown completed a 6-1 run with goals from Rawlings and Deirmenjian to pull ahead 14-6 with 4:56 remaining prior to an MIT tally to close the contest.
Brown 14, MIT 7
Brown....................... 6…3…3…2…14
MIT............................. 2…3…1…1…7
Brown Goals: Burke 3, Irwin 3, Bush 2, Kirchberg 2, Rawlings 2, Deirmenjian, Nunez.
Brown Saves: Renken 5, Weiser 2.
Game 2 – No. 14 Brown 9, No. 9 Harvard 7
Wyatt scored three goals, Kirchberg netted two tallies, and No. 14 Brown bested No. 9 Harvard, 9-7, at Blodgett Pool on Saturday afternoon in its second game of the day.
The Bears built a 7-3 lead in the third quarter and answered a 3-0 Harvard run with back-to-back goals in the fourth quarter to pull out the road victory.
Bush, Irwin, Rawlings, and senior Warren Smith (Dallas, Texas) each added one goal.
Weiser blocked 12 shots for the Bears.
Brown took a 2-0 lead after the first quarter as Kirchberg scored just 15 seconds into the contest and Wyatt netted a goal with 3:06 left in the frame.
After a pair of Harvard goals tied the score at 2-2 midway through the second quarter, Smith put Brown back up, 3-2, with a goal at the 1:42 mark of the frame. Irwin notched a goal on the inside with 46 seconds left in the frame to give the Bears a 4-2 halftime lead.
Wyatt opened the third quarter's scoring with a goal just 21 seconds into the second half. Following a Crimson tally, Kirchberg converted a 5-meter penalty shot after Irwin drew the penalty. A goal from Rawlings on a backhanded shot pushed Brown ahead 7-3 with 3:10 left in the third. Harvard closed the period's scoring with two markers to trim their deficit to 7-5 heading to the fourth.
After the hosts cut their margin to 7-6 with 5:06 remaining, Bush and Wyatt scored at the 3:20 and 1:55 marks respectively to give Brown a 9-6 edge. Harvard posted the game's final goal with seven seconds to play.
Brown 9, Harvard 7
Brown....................... 2…2…3…2…9
Harvard..................... 0…2…3…2…7
Brown Goals: Wyatt 3, Kirchberg 2, Bush, Irwin, Rawlings, Smith.
Brown Saves: Weiser 12.
