NORTON, Mass. — The Wheaton College (Mass.) men's water polo team was defeated by visiting Austin College, 26-6, this afternoon in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation contest at Balfour Natatorium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons dip to 1-16 overall and 1-6 in MPSF play, while the Kangaroos improve to 7-8 and 5-3.
Austin owned a 40-26 shot advantage and came up with 17 steals, while Wheaton collected six thefts.
Sophomore utility player Spyros Rapsomanikis (Kerkyra, Greece) and classmate Jack Ruggiero (Hamden, Conn.) each tallied three points with a goal and two assists. Rapsomanikis also added a field block and Ruggiero had a steal. First year Nic Boyer (Toledo, Ohio) played the entire contest in the field and responded with a goal, an assist and three steals for the Lyons. Sophomore goalie Dylan Boccali (Ventura, Calif.) finished with six saves for Wheaton.
Junior attacker Greyson Gaworecki (Seabrook, Texas) tallied six points, including five goals, to lead the Austin First year center defender Hudson Seavers-Reale (Baltimore, Md.) scored four goals and added an assist late in the game for the 'Roos, while first year attacker Owen Altermatt (Boerne, Texas) scored four times and added a game-high five steals. Junior center Sebastian Scheier (La Palma, Calif.) netted three goals, came up with a steal and added a field block. Sophomore starting goalie Caleb Maddox (Mesquite, Texas) stopped three of four shots to go with a steal in the first quarter, before giving way to first year Jordan Pomier (Pearland, Texas), who turned away two of six shots and netted a goal in the second quarter. First year goalie Donovan Lupul (Bakersfield, Calif.) played the final two periods and stopped five of six shots in 16 minutes of action.
The Lyons opened the scoring when first year attacker Hudson Kosiba (Birmingham, Mich.) found the back of the net just 48 seconds into the match, but it was Wheaton's only lead of the game.
Austin ripped off 11 straight goals, including four from Altermatt and three from Gaworecki, to take an 11-1 advantage with 3:31 to play in the second quarter. Wheaton's other goal in the first half came with two minutes to play when first year attacker Bray Turner (Forney, Texas) scored to cut the deficit to 11-2. Pomier capped the second quarter's scoring for the visitors with a goal coming at the thirty-second mark to give the 'Roos a double-digit cushion heading into the intermission.
Junior attacker Joshua Nelms (San Antonio, Texas) tallied the first goal of the third quarter for Austin, before the Lyons scored two of the next three goals with scores from Rapsomanikis and Ruggiero, to pull within 14-4 with 5:16 remaining in the third quarter.
The 'Roos effectively put the game out of reach with a 9-1 stretch, fueled by three goals from Seavers-Reale, to give them a 23-5 lead with 4:03 showing in the fourth quarter. Boyer netted the only marker during the run for Wheaton.
Sophomore two-meter Michael Ruemelin (Chicago, Ill.) netted the Lyons' final goal with 3:44 to go, before Austin scored the final three goals to close out the match.
The Kangaroos return to action on November 21 for the first day of the MPSF Championship Tournament, while Wheaton heads to New London, Conn. to take on Connecticut College on Friday, November 14 at 6:00 p.m.
