Water Polo Defeats #13 Bucknell

Lewisburg, Pa. – Last weekend the Fordham water polo squad defeated 17th-ranked St. Francis and was rewarded by receiving votes in the CWPA Top 20 weekly poll. Today, the Rams knocked off #13 Bucknell, 17-15, at the Bison Invitational, which could translate into a top-20 ranking next week.
 
Fordham, who snapped a 24-game home winning streak for Bucknell, also picked up an 11-8 win over Salem International in the tournament.
 
With the wins, the Rams improve to 7-2 on the year.
 
Fordham was led by sophomore Dimitris Koukias, who scored eight times in the two games, while senior Jake Miller-Tolt tallied six goals to go with two assists, and Tristen Knoflick added three goals and four assists in the two wins.
 
The Rams trailed 3-1 after the first quarter but even the score at the break with a seven-goal second quarter, led by three goals from Miller-Tolt. The Rams took a 14-11 lead by outscoring Bucknell 6-3 in the third quarter, with three of the goals coming from Koukias, and held on in the fourth for the 17-15 win.
 
Koukias led Fordham in the Bucknell game, scoring five times, while Miller-Tolt finished with three goals and one assist and senior Joseph Agabs, Knoflick, Phillip Wang, and George Maltby each scored twice.
 
Sophomore Bailey O'Mara made ten saves in the Fordham net while also recording three steals and two penalty blocks.
 
In the Salem International win, Fordham led by two, 4-2, after the first eight minutes, and took a four-goal lead, 7-3, in the halftime intermission. The Rams outscored the Tigers 4-2 in the third quarter to take an 11-5 lead en route to the 11-8 win.
 
Koukias and Miller-Tolt each tallied three goals while Wang added two for Fordham.
 
O'Mara recorded eleven saves and two steals over the first three quarters for the Rams.
 
Fordham closes our play at the Bison Invitational with a match against Wagner at 9:15 a.m. and against La Salle at 3:30 p.m. Both games will be conference contests.