ONTARIO, CA - The Iona College men's water polo team split a pair of games to begin their west coast road trip. In the opening game, the Gaels dropped the first contest of the day to California Baptist 13-6. In the nightcap, the team defeated Whittier 14-12 in a thrilling hard fought game.
Leading the way for the Gaels on the day was sophomore
Kyle Elmore with seven goals and one assists. Classmate
Jake Lloyd also had a strong performance adding seven goals, including six in the win over Whittier. Junior netminder
Stefen Hill put up a solid day in the cage, making 31 saves.
The Gaels trailed 2-0 early on in the first game against the Lancers, but tied the contest before the period break. Cal Baptist led 5-2 at the half before rattling off eight tallies in the second half. Senior
Kevin Caulfield and Juniors
Sean Davis and
Lee Stiles also score for the Gaels.
In the final game of the day, the Gaels (4-10) came out fast and held a 4-1 lead over the Poets with Lloyd scoring the first two for Iona. The hosts made a comeback and tied the score before the end of the first period.
Whittier took a 6-4 advantage midway through the second period, but three unanswered markers by the Gaels made it 7-6 at the half. Elmore and junior
Jonathan Hernould scored during the run.
The Maroon & Gold added four more goals in the third to take an 11-8 lead heading into the final period. The Poets tied the game with 5:06 remaining, 11-11, but the trio of Elmore, Lloyd and senior
Kristian Bocage added important goals down the stretch.
Whittier's last attempt fell short late in the game when a five-meter shot was granted to Lloyd with: 35 seconds remaining to increase the Iona lead 14-12.
Senior
Connor Bracken and freshman
Zach Presto also scored for Iona. Presto made an immediate impact for Iona on the defensive end with four steals.
The Gaels will begin the Gary Troyer Memorial Tournament on Friday when they take on Concordia and California Lutheran.
