Bucknell Men's Water Polo Opens Season at Navy Invite

Saturday, September 4

Annapolis, Md.

2:15 p.m.

Bucknell University

Cal

Photo by: Marc Hagemeier

Bucknell Men's Water Polo Opens Season at Navy Invite

9/3/2021 4:58:00 PM | Men's Water Polo

LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The No. 17 Bucknell University men's water polo team begins its 2021 fall campaign with a tough weekend of matchups at the Navy Open. The Bison open the season against No. 3 Cal at 2:15 p.m. on Saturday before facing Iona in the nightcap at 7:15 p.m.
The Bison then will play two more fixtures on Sunday, facing No. 9 (T) UC Davis before closing the weekend with a 2:15 p.m. matchup against Salem.

Live stats will not be available for this weekend's games.

Bucknell faces a top-four opponent for the second consecutive game after falling to No. 4 USC in the national quarterfinal in the spring.
The Bison return a talented group, including all but one starter for the game against the Trojans.
Bucknell is 0-11 all-time against the Golden Bears, with the two teams last meeting in 2021, a 20-3 defeat. The two teams also met in the 1977 NCAA Tournament, in which the Golden Bears won 28-10 over one of the finest Bucknell teams in program history.
John McBride enters his tenth season in charge, and has accumulated 172 wins, the second-most in program history behind Dick Russell (223).
Bucknell won its season-opener last year in Annapolis as well, taking down the No. 9-ranked Mids 12-11 in overtime. Bucknell went on to finish 4-2 overall, advancing to the national quarterfinals for the second straight year.

2021 Bucknell men's water polo season preview

After navigating through one of the most turbulent seasons in program history, head coach John McBride is welcoming back a sense of normalcy surrounding the program.
"The guys are excited," said McBride.   "That's what's important. We're ready to face some tough opposition this weekend, and it will be good to get a good test early on to find out where we're at."
The men's water polo program was one of the first teams at Bucknell to resume competition in the winter when it traveled to Navy on February 20 for two games. The Bison navigated through numerous pauses and postponements to capture their second straight MAWPC title, before falling to No. 4 USC for the second consecutive year in the quarterfinals.

Two of Bucknell's most experienced players, Andu Vlasceanu and Adrien Touzot, return for their junior seasons, and have been an instrumental part of Bucknell's recent success. Touzot has been a key presence in the cage for Bucknell the past two seasons, and is joined by senior Jack Otto, who is an experienced goalkeeper himself for the Bison having made 45 appearances for the Orange and Blue in his career. Bence Fazekas also brings added experience as a member of the senior class in the center.

"Andu and Adrien are operating with a big target on their back," said McBride. "They bring a winning mentality to the program with championship experience. We'll see how they can adjust to these tough games early on."
Also returning for the Bison is Doruk Ozar, who captured MAWPC Player of the Year honors as a rookie, scoring four goals in the MAWPC Championship against La Salle. While McBride noted that the main focus of his centers are to draw ejections to open up opportunities for teammates, the development of Istanbul native Ozar last season is a bright spot for the program.

"Doruk is a big presence in the water physically," said McBride. "He has played at the highest level mentally, but he still has a lot to build upon. We're hoping he can continue to improve for us."

Joining the Bison this year will be fellow Istanbul native Hasan Mogultay, who will play as a center defender. Mogultay brings top international experience to the table, having competed for the Turkish National Team along with Ozar.

Josh Yardley and Jack Lewis provide even more experience for the Bison, with both showing their scoring prowess against the Trojans last season. Yardley, who has appeared in two NCAA Tournaments in his career, scored 12 goals to lead the Bison, and managed to tally five goals against the Trojans to earn All-MAWPC Second Team accolades for the first time in his career.   Lewis was second on the team with nine goals in 2021, and chipped in a season-best three goals against the Trojans.

"We have four guys on the left side of the pool that will do well for us in Jack Lewis, Walker Butler, Shay Gillearn and Andu," said McBride. "We only have two lefties in Jack Bruce and Josh, and Josh still has some learning to do, and he's still growing with the program. I believe we have a good balance there."

McBride added that it has been beneficial for the team to have a full preseason, a first for both the freshman and sophomore class. The added preparation will come in handy for the Bison after having only played six games in the winter.
"Almost half of the group is learning the importance of every game, as well as preparing for a whole season," said McBride. "We want to build momentum heading towards later on in the year."

The Bison will have extra pressure having won the last two MAWPC titles, but McBride noted that the team feels pushed due to recent success, and will continue to use that as motivation in a tough MAWPC-East division this year.

"It's going to be a grind this year," said McBride. "We'll have to get our young guys up to speed to a new system. It's going to have to be a total team effort this year. We have a good second six, and we'll have to utilize our depth throughout the long season. We'll also look to get these young guys experience. If we want to win at the end of the year, we'll have to not only rest guys, but we'll have to make sure that the young guys have experience going forward."

Bucknell returns juniors Vlasceanu, Touzot, Will Gildea, and Colby Paine. The Bison have ten combined underclassmen, with Ethan Jones Walker Butler, and Liam Stott returning for year two. Matt Ryckman, Jack Bruce, Mitchell Bugalski, Shay Gillearn, Zach Yardley, Mogultay, and Jason Hackett join the Bison program as first-years for the fall.

Bucknell opens the Navy Invite at 2:15 p.m. Saturday against No. 3 Cal.