Men's Water Polo Makes Weekend Trip to California for Five Games

10/21/2015 3:44:00 PM | Men's Water Polo

By: TBD

LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell's men's water polo team will continue its seven-game road stretch when the squad makes its annual trip to California, competing in five matches this weekend. The Bison will face Pacific in a non-conference game on Friday, and will follow that up with contests in the Santa Clara Rodeo versus Cal Baptist and UC Davis on Saturday and Santa Clara and Fresno Pacific on Sunday.

The Bison (11-5 overall, 4-3 CWPA) will attempt to replicate the success they had last year, when they went 5-0 for the first time ever during their annual trip to California, coming in the middle of a seven-game winning streak. Over the course of that weekend, four of their victories came against nationally ranked opponents, highlighted by an 11-10 triumph over No. 12 UC Davis and 9-7 victory over No. 13 Air Force.

This season, Bucknell is tied for 14th in the national rankings, and three of its five weekend opponents are ranked as well. No. 4 Pacific has just two losses through 18 games with 12 of its 16 wins coming against ranked opponents, No. 10 UC Davis is 10-6 and No. 16 Santa Clara holds a 5-14 record.

Bucknell's greatest margin of victory at last season's Santa Clara Rodeo was three goals, so several players who have had recent success this year will need to step up for the squad in these tight matches. Jeff Hagen has 31 goals on the season, registering at least one score in 10 of his past 11 appearances. Ratimir Babic has a goal in 13 straight contests, while Tommy Stupp has been successful on 11 of his last 15 sprints.

Sean Daley and Stefan Aleksic have performed at elite levels this season for the Bison. Daley has 15 goals and 28 assists on the season, while Aleksic has scored three goals in each of his past three matches. The duo also had stellar performances at last year's Santa Clara Rodeo, combining for 19 goals and 15 assists. Aleskic earned Bison Athlete of the Week honors for his efforts last tournament.

There was just one game on the slate this past weekend for the Bison, as they fell 9-7 to CWPA opponent Navy. The two squads have split the season series thus far, with each school winning in its own pool. Aleksic paced the team with three goals and three assists to bring his season points total to 57, and Charlie Niehaus made seven saves on the day.

Following the Santa Clara Rodeo, the Bison will have two final regular-season matches before Southern Championships begin on Nov. 6. The first of those two matches will be an away conference game at Princeton on Oct. 31, while the following game will be on Nov. 1, with Mercyhurst visiting Kinney Natatorium.

Weekend Schedule (all times Eastern)
Friday, Oct. 23: Bucknell at No. 4 Pacific, 6:30 p.m. Video | Live Stats
Saturday, Oct. 24: Bucknell vs. Cal Baptist, 11 a.m.
Saturday, Oct. 24: Bucknell vs. No. 10 UC Davis, 4:20 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 25: Bucknell at No. 16 Santa Clara, 3 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 25: Bucknell vs. Fresno Pacific, 7 p.m.

Bucknell All-Time vs. Weekend Opponents
Bucknell vs. Pacific: 1-7 (Bucknell's only victory came at Navy Labor Day Open in 2007)
Bucknell vs. Cal Baptist: 2-6 (The Bison scored 13 goals in victory against them last year)
Bucknell vs. UC Davis: 3-3 (UC Davis has been nationally ranked in all three of its losses to the Bison)
Bucknell vs. Santa Clara: 5-7 (The Bison defeated No. 15 Santa Clara 9-8 one season ago)
Bucknell vs. Fresno Pacific: 2-0 (Bucknell has outscored Fresno Pacific 25-14 in the series)

Bucknell in National Rankings in 2015
Preseason: t-No. 19
Sept. 9: No. 17
Sept. 16: No. 17
Sept. 23: No. 15
Sept. 30: No. 15
Oct. 7: No. 13
Oct. 14: No. 13
Oct. 21: t-No. 14

Bucknell's Weekly Awards in 2015
CWPA Player of the Week: Stefan Aleksic (Sept. 17), Sean Daley (Oct. 16)
CWPA Rookie of the Week: Borna Bolanca (Oct. 16)
Bison Athlete of the Week: Sean Daley (Oct. 12)