Bronx, N.Y. – (October 21, 2023) – It was a big day for the nationally ranked Fordham water polo team, as the Rams earned two wins over ranked opponents at the Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament, hosted by Santa Clara.
With the two wins, Fordham improved to 16-6 on the season.
The day began with Fordham taking down #13 Cal Baptist by a 15-10 score.
After leading 3-2 after the first quarter, the Rams poured on the offense in the second quarter, netting seven goals to extend the lead to 10-4 by halftime.
Barnabas Eppel was the big gun in the quarter, registering four of his game-high five goals.
The Rams maintained that lead for the rest of the game, pulling away for the five-goal win.
Besides Eppel's five-goal game,
George Papanikolaou scored three times and added an assist, while
Luca Silvestri and Balzs Berenyi each scored twice. The remaining goals were scored by
Gabriel Melillo,
Paul Armingol, and
Lucas Nieto Jasny. In net,
Thomas Lercari finished with 11 saves in the game with three steals.
In game two of the day, Fordham rallied from behind to defeat #17 Santa Clara by a 12-10 count.
Trailing 7-4 at halftime, the Rams outscored Santa Clara, 4-1 in the third quarter to tie the game at eight, capped by a goal from Armingol with 1:26 left in the period.
Christos Loupakis then opened the scoring in the fourth quarter to give the Rams a 9-8 edge. The Broncos quickly tied the game, but back-to-back tallies by Nieto Jasny and Eppel put Fordham on top 11-9 with 5:14 to go in the game. Loupakis then put the game out of reach with his second goal of the period with 1:39 left in the match.
For Fordham, Eppel was once again the Rams' leading scorer with three goals, while Papanikolaou had two goals and four assists. Loupakis and Silvestri added two goals each with Armingol, Nieto Jasny, and
Jacopo Parrella having one goal apiece to close out the scoring. In net, Lercari ended the match with 15 saves and three steals.
The Rams conclude their west coast trip on Sunday, October 22
nd, when they take on #4 Pepperdine at Santa Clara. Game time is slated for 11:00 AM ET (8:00 AM PT).
