LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The number nine seed Wheaton College (Mass.) men's water polo team closed out it's first ever full season with a 14-8 loss to number eight seed Washington & Jefferson College in the second consolation game of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship Tournament at host University of Los Angeles California's Spieker Aquatics Center in Los Angeles, Calif.
The Lyons finished the season with a 0-19 record, while the Presidents improved to 5-14.
Washington & Jefferson owned a 36-31 shot advantage for the game.
First year utility player Spyros Rapsomanikis (Greece) netted a pair of goals and added an assist and a pair of steals for Wheaton, while classmate Josh Vander Wagen (Brookfield, Ill.) also collected three points with two goals, an assist and a steal. First year utility player Jack Ruggiero (Hamden, Conn.) contributed with two goals, a steal and a drawn exclusion. First year goalie Dylan Boccali (Ventura, Calif.) registered nine saves.
Junior attacker Aidan Miller (Grove City, Ohio) led all players with five points including four goals for the Presidents. First year defender Hector Santaella (Key Biscayne, Fla.) also tallied four goals in addition to a steal. Junior attacker Kailer Spicer (East Lansing, Mich.) picked up four assists and added a goal and four steals. First year keeper Andrew Rippke (Perrysburg, Ohio) turned away 14 of 22 shots, while sophomore goalie Timothy Deutsch (Hazleton, Pa.) stopped the only shot he faced.
The Lyons opened the contest with four of the first six goals, including a marker from Rapsomanikis to give them a 4-2 margin with 3:42 left in the opening quarter. Washington & Jefferson reeled off four straight goals with two each from Miller and Santaella to take the lead for good at 6-4 with 1:47 to go in the first half.
Rapsomanikis found the back of the net to cut the deficit to 6-5 for Wheaton with 18 ticks left on the second quarter clock. The Presidents tallied the next three goals with sophomore attacker Adam Brock (Cypress, Texas) giving them a 9-5 margin at the 4:35 mark of the third quarter.
Ruggiero and first year attacker
Jared Safren (Miami, Fla.) scored the next two markers for the Lyons to pull them within 9-7 with 1:57 remaining in the third period. Washington & Jefferson netted four straight goals to put the game out of reach at 13-7 with 76 seconds left in the contest. Miller netted a pair of goals during the stretch. Vander Wagen netted Wheaton's last marker with 46 seconds to go to make it 13-8. First year defender Brody Souder (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) matched the score for the Presidents with just 19 ticks left on the clock for a six-goal victory.
