2008 Summary: Redlands Men’s Water Polo Earns Highest-Ever Win Total
The University of Redlands men’s water polo team enjoyed
remarkable success throughout the 2008 season, compiling an overall
record of 29-9. The Bulldogs also ended this year’s campaign
with a 9-1 mark in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic
Conference (SCIAC) and finished at No. 19 in the Collegiate Water
Polo Association (CWPA) Varsity Top 20 poll. With 29 wins, the
Bulldogs gained the most victories in Redlands program history,
surpassing the 2001 record by four.
The Maroon and Gray started its season by going 3-2 at the UC San
Diego Triton Invitational. After losses to UC San Diego and Long
Beach State, the team rebounded with a solid 12-7 win over familiar
foe Cal Lutheran University. Senior utility player Buddy Olds
(Murrieta, CA) and senior driver Andrew Becskehazy (Miami, FL) each
scored three goals, while senior goalkeeper Teddy Trowbridge
(Mercer Island, WA) stopped eight shots to ensure the first victory
of the year for the Bulldogs.
In the fourth game of the two-day invitational, the team took down
the U.S. Air Force Academy (CO) by a score of 13-7 to earn its
first win against a Division I opponent during the 2008 campaign.
Becskehazy put away four goals to lead Redlands’ offensive
charge. Finally, the squad wrapped up the UCSD Triton Invitational
with a 13-9 upset of No. 17 Cal Baptist University. These wins
helped the Maroon and Gray break into the CWPA Varsity Top 20 at
No. 16.
Following a narrow defeat to the No. 14 Tigers of the University of
Pacific, Redlands rattled off four straight wins as the hosts of
the Inland Empire Classic. The Bulldogs crushed Whittier College as
the team relied on a myriad of different goal-scorers in the 17-8
win. In a largely defensive battle against Occidental College that
included 12 saves by Bulldog keeper Trowbridge, Redlands emerged
victorious by a score of 10-5. In addition, sophomore defender
Andrew Smith-Jones (Annapolis, MD) gave the Maroon and Gray an
offensive boost with three goals. Becskehazy and Olds each netted
three against Chapman University, leading the team to a 12-8
triumph over the Panthers. Finally, the team eked out a one-point
thriller against Concordia University – Irvine, as junior
center Brendan Meaney (Palm Desert, CA) played the role of the
offensive hero with four goals. As a result of the team’s 4-1
performance on the weekend, the Bulldogs moved up one spot in the
Varsity Top 20 to No. 15.
Traveling north to Santa Cruz, the Bulldogs entered the UC Santa
Cruz Slugfest with a 7-3 record. Despite an opening 7-12 loss to UC
Davis, Redlands battled back to win its three final games of the
weekend. The Maroon and Gray demolished the host team as
Meaney’s four goals helped down the Banana Slugs by a score
of 14-7. Against No. 13 Santa Clara, the squad faced a tough test
and fought hard for a gritty 9-8 victory. Junior goalkeeper Jack
Amaral (Porterville, CA) split time with Trowbridge in goal and
saved a team-high 10 shots. Finally, Redlands edged the Air Force
Academy for the second time this season, winning by a score of
10-8. On the offensive end, Meaney led the way with three goals,
while Amaral gained nine saves between the pipes.
During the Claremont Convergence, the team ran the table by
notching wins over Division I Fordham University (NY), Concordia,
and Iona College (NY). The Bulldogs capped off a strong tournament
with an exciting 11-8 victory over Johns Hopkins University (MD).
In this important win over the team’s top Division III
out-of-conference rival, Redlands gained three goals each from
Meaney, Becskehazy, and Olds, while Trowbridge made seven
stops.
The toughest tournament slate of the year came at the SoCal Water
Polo Tournament, hosted by Loyola Marymount University and
Pepperdine University. After losing a lopsided decision to No. 4
Pepperdine, the Bulldogs rallied back with an 11-8 victory over No.
14 St. Francis College (NY). During the second day, No. 8 UC Irvine
handed Redlands a tough loss, while No. 15 Princeton University
(NJ) took the Maroon and Gray to sudden-death overtime where the
Bulldogs eventually lost by one goal.
After their non-conference run of tournaments, the Bulldogs opened
the SCIAC season with a road trip to Cal Lutheran University. After
handling the Kingsmen, Redlands returned home for its tightest
conference match of the season as it faced off against
Pomona-Pitzer Colleges. Despite jumping out to a 5-0 lead, the
Maroon and Gray gave up five goals, which left the game tied in the
final minutes of the fourth quarter. Becskehazy fired in a
game-winning score in the waning seconds, which gave Redlands a 6-5
victory.
As a result of the Pomona-Pitzer win and an 11-5 victory over
Occidental, the team reached its highest national ranking of the
season at No. 13.
The Bulldogs rattled off eight more wins, defeating all of their
conference foes in the round-robin and cruising by Chapman
University and UC Santa Cruz in non-SCIAC action. Through this
stretch, Redlands out-scored its opponents, 147-55. The Stags of
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges put up a tough fight on November 8,
but the Bulldogs prevailed by a score of 15-12. Smith-Jones and
Becskehazy teamed up on offense in this hard-fought battle, scoring
four goals apiece.
With an undefeated mark, Redlands entered the 2008 SCIAC
Championships as the No. 1 seed, and headed to Cal Lutheran
University for an exciting finale to the conference season.
In the first round, Redlands blasted Caltech by a score of 23-2 as
10 different Bulldogs found the back of the net. Unfortunately, the
run stopped there as the squad lost a heartbreaker to Cal Lutheran
in the semi-final match by a score of 11-13. Despite the
disappointment, Redlands quickly rebounded with a solid 11-5
victory over Whittier to finish third at the tournament. Combining
these results with their undefeated showing in the round-robin, the
Bulldogs took second in the SCIAC standings with 13 points, sitting
just one point off of champion Pomona-Pitzer.
Due to the team’s rampant success in conference play,
Redlands placed four on the All-SCIAC teams. Becskehazy took home
the 2008 SCIAC Player of the Year honors while Smith-Jones and
Meaney captured First Team All-Conference accolades. Senior utility
player Jim Kehrig (Danville, CA) picked up his first-ever
All-Conference recognition with a berth on the Second Team.
Following a difficult showing at the SCIAC Championships, the team
turned to the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) Championships
for redemption. As the fourth seed, Redlands dropped a first-round
decision to fifth-seeded Santa Clara by a narrow 9-10 margin.
Following the loss, the Bulldogs strung together three wins to
ensure a fifth-place finish at the WWPA. After crushing Santa Cruz
and rolling over SCIAC Champion Pomona-Pitzer, Redlands faced a
talented Air Force team for the third time. At the end of
regulation, the score remained tied, bringing the Falcons and the
Bulldogs to overtime. Redlands compiled three goals in the first
overtime period and came out with an exciting 13-11 win to finish
off the 2008 campaign.
The WWPA bestowed First Team honors upon Becskehazy, as the senior
driver scored 71 goals during the season. He also provided a
team-high 48 assists, 42 steals and 22 ejections drawn. Meaney
received a spot on the Second Team, following a season where he
netted 72 goals and offered 24 assists, 41 steals and 42 ejections
drawn. Freshman driver Tyler Harp (San Bernardino, CA) nabbed WWPA
All-Freshman Team honors with four goals, eight assists, six steals
and one ejection drawn.
Although the team must work to fill the voids left by its talented
seniors, the Bulldogs boast great experience in the returning
class, which will help guide them back to the top of the SCIAC
standings. In addition, Redlands promises to compete as one of the
best among Division III institutions as Coach Whittemore embarks
upon his 22nd season at the helm of the men’s water polo
program.
1200 E. Colton Ave., P.O. Box 3080 Redlands, CA 92373-0999