By Maria Trivelpiece

The Fordham University water polo team had hoped that coming home to the Bronx might be the change it needed to turn its season around, but this was not so. The team’s struggles continued. It lost both matches of its home opener this past Sunday at the Col. Francis B. Messmore Aquatic Center.

In the first game of the doubleheader, the Rams fell to the George Washington Colonials 14-7. Junior Jake Miller-Tolt continued his dominance, scoring a pair of goals in the loss. Samuel Varshisky had two as well. Magnus Sims, Diego Delgado and Dimitris Koukias each added a tally of their own, but it was simply not enough. Fordham gave up six goals to the Colonials in the second quarter. Patrick Coffey also had five saves in the loss.

The second match of the day was much closer, with the Rams falling to Navy 9-8. It was their second time this year taking on the Midshipmen; earlier in the season, they lost another tough match by one goal. Miller-Tolt had another stellar outing, netting five goals for the Rams. Sims snagged two scores and Ian Watson one. Coffey recorded five more saves, but the Rams could not pull through to victory.

With the losses, the team falls to 0-4 in Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Championship play and 4-10 overall.

The Rams have no games scheduled for the next week before heading to California to take on tough opponents in the Gary Troyer Tournament. Over the course of three days, the Fordham University men’s water polo team will face Redlands, Mt. San Antonio, Occidental, Whittier, California Lutheran and Cal Baptist. They will look to tally some victories before returning to the east coast.