BROOKLYN, N.Y. -- The Harvard men's water polo picked up its first NWPC win of the season with an 18-14 victory at LIU on Sunday morning and finished the day with a pair of wins after defeating Iona, 18-7, in New Rochelle.
Harvard is 5-10 overall and 2-1 in the NWPC. The Crimson never trailed LIU (6-9, 1-3) and led 10-6 at halftime before needing to withstand several runs by the Sharks in the third and fourth quarters to escape with the win.
Dean Strauser and
Jack Burghardt each led the Crimson with four goals apiece.
In game two against Iona (5-13, 1-3), the game was even 4-4 after one despite Harvard staking an early lead.
Connor Kim scored the first two goals of the second quarter and the Crimson led the rest of the way. Kim led Harvard in scoring for the game with six goals, including four in the fourth quarter.
Harvard 18, LIU 14
Highlights
• The Crimson got the scoring started with back-to-back 5-meter penalty shots by Strauser and
Jacob Tsotadze.
• Harvard pulled away late in the second quarter to take a 10-6 lead at halftime on a goal from
Felix Pal.
• LIU outscored Harvard 5-2 in the third quarter to trim the Crimson's lead to one heading to the final frame.
• The two sides played even through the midway point of the fourth until back-to-back goals from
Connor Kim and Strauser extended the Harvard lead to three.
Goals: Burghardt (4), Strauser (4), Kim (3), Peabody (3),
Tyler Hogan (1), Pal (1),
Geoff Slutzky (1), Tsotadze (1)
Saves: Price (8)
Harvard 18, Iona 7
Highlights |
Final Stats
• Four different players scored for the Crimson in a first quarter that was tied 4-4.
• Kim opened the second-quarter scoring with back-to-back goals followed by
Lukas Peabody's second of the game to cap a 3-0 run for the Crimson.
• Burghardt scored three times in the third, two on a 3-0 Harvard run to open the period, with his last to push the Crimson's lead to four and stop a brief run by the Gaels.
• Iona was able to keep Harvard from pulling away as goalie Eric Caplener came up with back-to-back saves on a pair of Crimson 5-meter attempts.
• Kim bested his second-quarter performance by starting the fourth with three consecutive goals as Harvard extended its largest lead of the game to seven.
Goals: Kim (6), Burghardt (5), Peabody (3), Strauser (2), Pal (1),
Vilas Sogaard-Srikrishnan (1)
Saves: Ransford (11)
Up Next
Harvard is back at home for the first time since opening weekend next Saturday when it hosts Brown inside Blodgett Pool for a Noon ET start on October 10.
