Bronx, N.Y. – (October 17, 2023) – The nationally ranked Fordham water polo team is back on the road this week for the squad's annual west coast road trip to California, which will feature six matches against nationally ranked opponents.
Fordham (14-3) enters the week on a ten-game win streak following a pair of wins against #19 Navy and Gannon. The Rams edged Navy by a 10-8 score, while taking down Gannon, 21-9. Fordham got more good news, as goalkeeper
Thomas Lercari returned to the Rams' lineup for the first time this season, after missing the first 15 games with an injury. Lercari made his presence known, recording 18 saves over the two matches.
This week's games start with road matches at #15 Pacific (9-6) on Wednesday night, followed by a match against defending national champion, #2 Cal (13-3). Fordham will then partake in the Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament, hosted by Santa Clara, from October 20-22. The Rams will face off against #14 San Jose St. (4-6), #13 Cal Baptist (14-12), #17 Santa Clara (9-8), and #4 Pepperdine (15-4).
GAME COVERAGE
Wednesday – 9:00 PM –#16 Fordham at #15 Pacific |
Live Video (ESPN+) |
Live Stats |
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Thursday – 5:00 PM – #16 Fordham at #2 Cal |
Live Video (Pac-12 Insider) |
Live Stats |
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Friday – 1:00 PM – #16 Fordham vs. #14 San Jose St. |
Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament Central |
Live Stats |
Follow on Twitter at @FordhamPolo
Saturday – 12:20 PM – #16 Fordham vs. #13 Cal Baptist |
Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament Central |
Live Stats |
Follow on Twitter at @FordhamPolo
Saturday – 5:40 PM – #16 Fordham at #17 Santa Clara |
Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament Central |
Live Stats |
Follow on Twitter at @FordhamPolo
Sunday – 1:00 PM – #16 Fordham vs. #4 Pepperdine |
Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament Central |
Live Stats |
Follow on Twitter at @FordhamPolo
HISTORY: Fordham has history with all six opponents this week. The Rams are 0-1-1 against Pacific, having played to an 8-8 tie in 2006, while falling to the Tigers in last year's season opener, 13-7.
The Rams have only played Cal and San Jose State once before. Then-#2 Cal defeated Fordham, 12-3, in 1986, while the Rams posted an 18-4 win over San Jose State in 2007.
On Saturday, Cap Baptist holds an 11-1 series history edge over Fordham with the Rams' lone win coming in overtime in 2019 by an 11-10 score. Against Santa Clara, Fordham is only 1-9 against the Broncos with the lone win coming in 2019 (12-9).
For Sunday, it will be the third meeting between Fordham and Pepperdine, and the second this season. Pepperdine won both previous matches with the Waves winning the early meeting 13-9 (1979) and 16-10 (2023).
LAST TIME OUT (10/14): The #17/14 Fordham Rams took care of business on Saturday, posting a pair of victories at the Col. Francis B. Messmore Aquatic Center, extending the team's current win streak to ten games.
The day opened with a battle of ranked teams with Fordham hosting #19 Navy. The game came down to the wire with
George Papanikolaou scoring twice in the fourth quarter to secure a 10-8 win. The Rams took full advantage of Navy exclusions and penalties. Of the Rams' 10 goals, seven were scored on either penalty shots and man-up advantages.
Fordham led 3-1 after the first quarter and 5-4 at the half. The Rams and Midshipmen traded goals up until Fordham went up 9-7 with 5:00 left in the fourth quarter. Then with 2:08 left in the game, Navy's Aiden Day was rolled for a flagrant misconduct, awarding a penalty shot to the Rams. Papanikolaou converted on that shot to make it a three-goal edge for Fordham, which would be enough for the victory.
Papanikolaou finished with three goals and an assist to lead the Fordham offense, while
Luca Silvestri and
Barnabas Eppel each had two goals and an assist. The Rams also welcomed back goalkeeper
Thomas Lercari in net, as he made 12 saves in his season debut.
In game two on Saturday, Eppel scored a season-high six times to lead Fordham to a 21-9 win over Gannon. The Rams led wire-to-wire, scoring the first six goals of the contest and had a 9-1 lead after the first quarter.
Eppel scored six times on eight shots and added a pair of steals, while
Christian Gotterup also had three goals in the game.
Balazs Berenyi,
Jagger McMannis,
Paul Armingol, and
Lucas Nieto Jasny each netted two goals, while
Christos Loupakis,
Gabriel Melillo, Silvestri, and
Gabriel Guinane had the remaining tallies.
RAMSES CHALLENGE: The Ramses Challenge is back this season. Fans can pledge support for the team in the Ramses Challenge for each goal the water polo team scores this season.
Be a part of the challenge by clicking here.
WHAT'S NEXT: After this week's games, Fordham returns to the pool for three home games from October 28-29. The Rams host George Washington and Mt. St. Mary's on October 28
th at 11:00 AM and 6:00 PM, respectively, while taking on Bucknell at 10:00 AM on October 29
th.
