By Anthony Ali
After splitting its first two matches of the CWPA Northern Division Championship, Fordham water polo lost in the third place match to No. 17 St. Francis, 13-11. The Rams learned on Tuesday that their performance was enough to qualify for the CWPA Championships that will take place in two weeks.
In their first match, against Iona, the Rams were able to avenge earlier losses to the Gaels and win their first match of the Championship, 10-7.
The Rams jumped out to an early three-goal lead and took a 5-2 advantage into the second half. That margin was enough to hold off the Gaels and push the Rams onward.
The Rams’ second match did not go nearly as well. No. 11 Brown took down the Rams, winning 13-3.
The Rams’ final match of Northern Division play came against St. Francis (NY).
St. Francis scored early, after only 1:23 elapsed, but a quick response from junior Patrick Reyes tied the game at one. The Terriers then netted two of their own, but the Rams were able to tie things once again with sophomore R.J. Simmons and junior Landon Kern netting for Fordham.
With neither team able to open up a lead, the teams continued to trade goals until the second quarter. With the game tied at 5-5, St. Francis found the back of the net four times in a row to race ahead with a 9-5 lead that they held until halftime.
Early in the third quarter, Simmons scored his second goal of the match to narrow the lead down to three. The Terriers, however, were able to outscore Fordham 3-2 in the remaining minutes of the quarter to pull ahead and a take a comfortble 12-8 lead into the final period.
Conceding another goal at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Rams trailed by five. Needing goals, the Rams put together a three goal flurry, with Simmons scoring the first and junior Andrew Gonzalez netting the other two. Trailing 13-11 with only 1:27 left on the clock, senior Noah LeBeau gave the Rams an opportunity to counterattack with a save on the defensive end, but the Rams were unable to convert.
Gonzalez led the Rams in scoring with four goals, followed by Simmons with three. Kern, freshman Ethan Vandeventer and junior Patrick Bergum had one goal each. In goal, LeBeau made seven saves in what could have been his last game as a Ram.
The Rams have earned an at-large bid in the 2014 CWPA Championship field as the number nine seed. The team’s first match will be on Friday, Nov. 21 against eight seeded George Washington at 10 a.m.
