LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The number nine seed Wheaton College (Mass.) men's water polo team was defeated by eighth-seeded Washington & Jefferson College, 19-9, this morning in the First Round of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship Tournament hosted by University of Los Angeles California at the Spieker Aquatics Center in Los Angeles, Calif.

The Lyons dip to 0-17 on the season and will play a consolation game tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. EST, while the Presidents advance to take on top-seeded UCLA today at 4:45 p.m. EST. 

Wheaton owned a 37-33 shooting margin, but Washington & Jefferson was able to convert at a higher rate.

First year utility player Jack Ruggiero (Hamden, Conn.) led the Lyons with three goals on four shots and added a field block and an earned exclusion, while classmate Spyros Rapsomanikis (Kerkyra, Greece) netted a pair of goals, while making a game-high six steals. First year 2-meter Michael Ruemelin (Chicago, Ill.) contributed with two goals and also drew an exclusion. First year goalie Dylan Boccali (Ventura, Calif.) stopped seven shots and came up with a steal.

The Presidents were led by senior attacker Aidan Johnson (Nassau, Bahamas) with a game-high five markers and added an assist and a steal, while first year utility player Parker Elliott (Pennsburg, Pa.) scored four times in addition to recording an assist and three steals. First year defender Brody Souder (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) tallied a trio of goals to go with an assist and two steals. Sophomore goalie Timothy Deutsch (Hazleton, Pa.) stopped nine of 13 shots and first year Andrew Rippke (Perrysburg, Ohio) turned away six of 10 attempts.

Wheaton scored four of the first five goals of the game to take a 4-1 lead with 1:17 to play in the opening quarter. Ruggiero sparked the opening outburst with a pair of goals for the Lyons. Sophomore utility player Dillon Parker (Nipomo, Calif.) and junior attacker Aidan Miller (Grove City, Ohio) each netted goals in the final minute for Washington & Jefferson to cut the deficit to 4-3 before the end of the quarter. 

The two goals to end the quarter sparked a dominant 12-goal run for the Presidents to give them a 13-4 advantage, while holding Wheaton scoreless for the second quarter. Johnson scored five times to fuel Washington & Jefferson's game-turning offensive showing. 

Rapsomanikis ended a scoring drought of 12:59 for the Lyons and pulled them to within 13-5 with a tally at the 4:18 mark of the third quarter. The Presidents scored five of the next six goals, including two from Elliott, to increase their cushion to 18-6 with 5:50 remaining in the contest. Ruemelin tallied the lone goal of the third period for Wheaton.