Bronx, N.Y. – The men's semifinals of the U.S. Open are being played tonight along with a Subway Series game between the Yankees and the Mets. But neither Flushing Meadows nor Yankee Stadium was the site of the most intense action of the night as that occurred in the Col. Francis B. Messmore Aquatic Center where the fifth-ranked Fordham men's water polo squad was taking on the ninth-ranked Pepperdine team. And the Rams sent their fans home happy, defeating the Waves, 16-12.
 
With the win, Fordham improves to 5-0 on the season while Pepperdine falls to 4-5.
 
Junior Andras Toth and freshman Vuk Kojic led the Rams with five goals each in the win while freshman Oktavian Veklyuk added three. Freshman Viktor Savic recorded six saves in the Fordham net.
 
The game featured the highest-ranked opponent for the Rams at the Messmore Aquatics Center.
 
How it Happened
• The score was tied at two midway through the first quarter, thanks to a goal from Toth, when the Rams scored the next three goals - two from Kojic - to take a 5-2 lead late in the first.
 
• Pepperdine scored twice in the final 38 seconds of the first to make it a one-goal game, 5-4.
 
• Fordham turned on the offense in the second quarter, scoring four unanswered goals from four different players, to take a 9-4 lead with two minutes left in the half.
 
• The Waves responded with the final three tallies of the first half to cut the Fordham lead to two at the break, 9-7.
 
• After Toth scored the first goal of the second half for the Rams, Pepperdine scored three straight to knot the game at ten with 2:04 left in the third.
 
• Another goal from Toth with 47 seconds left in the third ignited a 4-0 Fordham run as the Rams took a 14-10 lead on Toth's fourth goal of the game with 2:42 left.
 
• Pepperdine managed to make it a 14-12 game a minute later but goals from Veklyuk and Toth over the final 39 seconds sealed the win for the Rams.
 
What's Next?
• The Rams host eleventh-ranked San Jose State on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. at the Messmore Aquatics Center.