George Washington University
No. 20 Brown
Water Polo Beats UC Merced, Splits Games on Both Days of Harvard Invitational
10/15/2023 7:08:00 PM | Water Polo
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The George Washington men's water polo team wrapped up the Harvard Invitational on Sunday with a 15-7 win over UC Merced. The Revolutionaries return from the weekend at 2-2 after beating Iona and UC Merced, but falling to No. 18 Harvard and No. 20 Brown. GW moves to 9-10 on the season, entering the home stretch of the regular season with five MAWPC games remaining.
Brown 13, GW 9
GW opened the weekend with a tall task in front of them, facing No. 20 Brown, and despite a late surge in the fourth quarter, the Revolutionaries fell to the Bears, 13-9, on Saturday morning.
GW fell behind early and trailed 6-3 at halftime. A five-goal third quarter from Brown gave the Bears a seven-goal cushion heading into the final frame, and though GW's offense started to figure out the Bears with five goals in the fourth quarter, it was too little, too late as Brown held on to secure the win.
Mateus Stellet paced GW with four goals and added a season-high eight exclusions drawn. Andrija Sekulic contributed with four points to the cause (one goal and three assists), while Leo Lueddemann added two goals.
GW 10, Iona 6
GW clamped down on defense in the second match of the Harvard Invitational and allowed just one goal in each of the final three quarters, as the Revolutionaries picked up a 10-6 win over Iona, and their first win of the Harvard Invitational on Saturday afternoon.
GW never trailed in the game, but it was close throughout as the Revolutionaries didn't hold more than a two-goal lead until the fourth quarter. GW led 6-4 at halftime, and the teams matched each other with one goal apiece in the third quarter.
Iona cut the deficit to one with an early fourth-quarter strike, but the Buff and Blue were able to string together three-straight goals to put the Gaels away.
Viktor Jovanovic stuffed the stat sheet with five goals, two assists and two steals. Goalkeeper Luca Castorina shined while allowing a season-low six goals on 20 attempts.
Harvard 18, GW 8
The Buff and Blue started out well against the Crimson, but weren't able to hold onto its early lead and lost, 18-8, on Sunday morning.
After Harvard scored the game's first goal, GW put three goals on the Crimson and were looking like they had figured out the nation's 18th ranked team. Instead, Harvard responded with a 7-goal streak of its own that lasted into the second quarter.
Harvard led 10-6 at halftime, which GW cut to 10-7 in the third quarter, but that was the closest the Buff and Blue would get, as Harvard had the better of play in the second half and took down GW for the second time this season.
Stellet provided most of the offense in the game with six goals, which is the second-most he's scored in a single game this season (most was seven vs. Concordia Irvine). Jovanovic, while silenced in the goal column, added three assists.
GW 15, UC Merced 7
The Revolutionaries hit the ground running and never looked back against the Bobcats, taking down the west coast opponent, 15-7, on Sunday afternoon to conclude their time at the Harvard Invitational.
GW left no doubt against UC Merced, leading 4-1 after one quarter and 10-2 at halftime. The GW Revs held a 4-3 advantage in the third quarter and tied UC Merced, 2-2, in the fourth quarter on its way to the victory.
The offense flowed through Sekulic and Stellet for much of the match. Sekulic had a game-high nine points on five goals and four assists, while Stellet equaled Sekulic's five goals and added one assist.
UP NEXT
The Revolutionaries have a break in their schedule until Saturday, Oct. 28, when they resume MAWPC play on the road against Fordham and Wagner in the New York City area.
