NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship Program |
NCAA Interactive Bracket
Bronx, N.Y. – (November 26, 2021) – The history making season for the 16
th-ranked Fordham water polo team takes the next step on Saturday, as the Rams compete in the opening round of the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history.
Fordham (26-6), the MAWPC champion, is set to face Princeton (25-7), the NEWPC champion and tenth-ranked team in the latest top 20 national poll. This is a re-match from earlier this season at the Princeton Invitational, when the Tigers took a 13-6 decision on September 12
th.
Each team heads into Saturday, playing very well. The Tigers have won seven of their last eight matches, while Fordham has won 12 of the last 14 games.
GAME COVERAGE:
Saturday – Fordham at Princeton – 1:00 PM –
Live Video (ESPN+) |
Follow on Twitter - @FordhamPolo
SERIES HISTORY: The Tigers have gotten the better of the Rams in the overall series. Since 1997, Princeton is 15-1 against Fordham with the lone Rams' win coming in 2019, an 11-10 win at the Messmore Aquatic Center.
LAST TIME OUT: Before Sunday, the Fordham water polo program had only twice gotten a chance to claim the top spot in the East in 1973 and 1974, with those teams being led by Fordham Hall of Famers Ned Kelly and Kevin Sullivan. On Sunday, a young, confident group of Rams made sure that the third time was the charm, as Fordham defeated Navy, 9-6, to claim the 2021 MAWPC Championship and an automatic berth into the NCAA Championship.
The match opened with Navy taking a 2-1 lead after the first quarter of play, but the Rams took charge in the second quarter, scoring three times, while holding Navy without a goal for a 4-2 lead.
Lucas Nieto Jasny tied the game at two with 3:41 left in the quarter, while
Gabriel Melillo put the Rams on top 3-2 with 1:28 remaining. Nieto Jasny then snuck in a late extra-man goal just before halftime for the two-goal lead.
After exchanging markers in the third quarter, the Rams extended the lead to three, 6-3, on
George Papanikolaou's third goal of the game, and then maintained that edge going into the final quarter up 7-4.
Navy closed the gap back to two at 7-5 early in the fourth, but back-to-back goals by
Jacopo Parrella and
Curtis Vidinoff extended the Rams' lead to four at 9-5, which they would not relinquish.
For Fordham, Papanikolaou led the way with three goals, while Nieto Jasny had two goals and two assists.
Hans Zdolsek added a goal, two assists, and two blocks, while Vidinoff, Parrella, and Melillo had the remaining goals for Fordham. In net,
Thomas Lercari made nine saves to go with two steals, as he was named Rookie of the Tournament.
HARDWARE ABOUNDS: Saturday's match between Fordham and Princeton will feature plenty of players with hardware from the 2021 season. Fordham had four players named to MAWPC East Region First Team, led by league MVP
Hans Zdolsek and Rookie of the Year
George Papanikolaou, who were joined by
Bailey O'Mara and
Jacopo Parrella. For Princeton, three Tigers were named All-NEWPC, highlighted by Roko Pozaric as the Rookie of the Year and First Team All-NEWPC. Keller Maloney was also a First Team selection, while Mitchell Cooper earned Second Team accolades.
SCOUTING PRINCETON: The Tigers are led offensively by their First Team All-NEWPC duo of Keller Maloney and Roko Pozaric. Maloney has a team-high 65 goals this season to go with 37 assists, while Pozaric had 62 goals to go with 40 assists and 39 steals on the year. In net, the duo of Billy Motherway and Antonio Knez have tended net, with Knez making 193 saves with 16 steals with Motherway having 127 saves and eight saves.
WELCOME ABOARD: The impact of newcomers to the 2021 Fordham Rams has been immense. First year players have accounted for 299 of the 433 goals scored this season (69%), led by
George Papanikolaou's team-best 74 markers. The Rams also had three newcomers record over 100 points on the year with
Jacopo Parrella at 123 (57 goals, 66 assists),
Lucas Nieto Jasny at 114 (67 goals, 47 assists), and Papanikolaou at 108 (74 goals, 34 assists).
DON'T FORGET ME: Aside from newcomer scoring, the addition of
Thomas Lercari has also proved vital to the Rams' success down the stretch in net. Lercari has started the last eight games for the Rams, averaging 10.1 saves per games and was named the Rookie of the Tournament at the MAWPC Championship.
WHAT'S NEXT: The winner of Saturday's match will move on to the NCAA Championship quarterfinals travel to UCLA for a December 2
nd match at 6:00 PM Eastern.
