NEW ROCHELLE, NY – In a triple-overtime match featuring nine ties and four lead changes, the Iona University men's water polo team fell 14-13 in the closing seconds to Long Island University in a Northeast Water Polo Conference match this evening at Hynes Pool.
GAME SUMMARY
Junior Ryan Tannus and freshman Charlie Harbour led the Maroon and Gold with three goals each, while junior co-captain Pavle Musikic scored twice. Junior Hugh Coyle, junior Brett Grady, sophomore Toni Vlasic and freshman Christian Couch added one score each.
In goal, junior co-captain P.J. Bartzen had seven saves on 28 Sharks shots, including stopping a five-meter penalty try, with seven steals and 14 goals against.
The Gaels scored 13 goals on 39 shots and made eight assists, with three each from Coyle and Grady. On defense, Iona made 17 steals, with three by Grady, and blocked three shots. The Gaels drew 15 Sharks kickouts, with seven by Musikic, including one five-meter penalty, while being ejected 22 times, including one five-meter penalty. Musikic, junior Daniel Raz and freshman Logan Hardel were disqualified with three ejections. Iona committed 18 turnovers. Iona scored six man-up goals on 14 chances, while LIU scored three man-up goals on ten chances. Grady won all seven swim-offs.
Neither squad scored until the Sharks got on the board for a 1-0 lead with 3:31 left in the opening period. With 1:17 to go, Couch tied the score at one all. At the six-second mark, LIU regained a one-goal edge, 2-1, going into the second period.
The Sharks needed only 41 seconds into the second quarter to take a two-score 3-1 lead, but Harbour sliced that advantage back to one, 3-2, on the Gaels' next possession. After Bartzen stopped a five-meter penalty attempt, LIU went up two, 4-2, with 3:09 left on the clock. With 27 ticks to go, a man-up score gave the visitors a three-goal 5-2 advantage until Musikic's buzzer-beating goal cut that edge to two, 5-3.
After winning the second-half swimoff, Grady found the back of the net to pull Iona within one, 5-4, with just 26 seconds gone. Tannus knotted the score at five with 4:44 left. LIU answered with a man-up goal on its next chance to go back up one, 6-5, just 25 seconds later. Harbour's second score on a breakaway tied the game for the third time at six apiece with 2:49 left. At the two-minute mark, Tannus gave the Gaels their first lead, 7-6. Musikic buried a five-meter penalty try with 51 seconds left for a two-goal Iona edge, 8-6. The visitors answered with ten ticks remaining to slice the Gaels' lead back to one, 8-7, going into the final period.
With 3:36 gone in the fourth period, the Sharks tied the score at eight each, then went up one, 9-8, on a 3-0 run with 3:03 remaining. Coyle knotted the score for the fifth time with nine goals each with 2:31 on the clock. A Sharks man-up goal with 11 ticks left put LIU back up one, 10-9, then Vlasic sent the match into overtime with a half-second left.
Just 23 seconds into the first overtime period, Raz put the Gaels back one, 11-10, then the Sharks answered on their next trip down the pool for an eleven-all tie. With 1:48 remaining, Tannus' third score restored a one-goal 12-11 Iona edge going into the second overtime.
Forty-two ticks into the second overtime, LIU tied the match at 12 all, then Harbour's third goal put Iona back up one, 13-12, with 1:58 left. Knotting the match at 13, LIU sent the match into a third overtime with 14 seconds left. Capitalizing on a man-up chance with 29 seconds left, LIU went home with a 13-12 win.
UP NEXT
On Friday, the Gaels travel to Staten Island for a non-conference match against Wagner College at 6:30 p.m.
