CAMBRIDGE, MA – The sixth-seeded Iona College men's water polo team fell in the opening round of the Northeast Water Polo Association Championship to the host and third-seeded Harvard Crimson. The Gaels could not bounce back after allowing six unanswered goals in the opening nine minutes as part of a 16-7 defeat.
Senior captain Zach Roper led the Maroon & Gold with three goals while senior Jonathan Hulbert scored two. Seniors Marc Stauble and Jay Pagano added one score each. Iona finished with six assists.
Sophomore goalie Sebastian Van Reeken made eight saves on 26 Harvard shots. He was disqualified with 4:22 left in the third period and sophomore Jorge Andres Torres made three saves in the cage over the remainder of the match.
On defense, Iona made five steals and blocked one shot. Iona drew nine Harvard kickouts, while being ejected seven times. The Gaels turned the ball over 14 times. Iona scored on four of nine man-up opportunities and Harvard capitalized on four of eight.
Both squads were scoreless for the opening 5:16. Harvard broke the seal with a lob shot to give it a lead that it would not relinquish. The Crimson followed with two quick-succession goals to go up three by the 3:21 mark. Another Harvard goal with four ticks left built a 4-0 advantage going into the second quarter. Iona failed to score on six shots in the first period.
Two more Crimson goals in the first minute of the second period put Harvard up 6-0, beore Roper got the Gaels on the board with 6:29 remaining. On their next two possessions, the host bounced back with two more goals to make it an 8-1 margin. Just 1:42 later, Stauble's lob went over the Harvard goalie's fingertips to pull Iona within six 8-2. The Crimson went into halftime with a 10-3 lead.
Harvard added three more goals in the opening 3:38 of the third period to lead 13-3. Pagano scored with 3:53 left to cut the Crimson advantage to nine. Both squads scored three goals in the final period with Roper adding his third score and Hulbert hitting two straight goals for Iona.
The Gaels will face the MIT at 1 PM on Saturday Nov. 18 for the fifth-place game.
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