Men’s Water Polo to Host 2024 Bucknell Invitational Starting Friday

LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell men's water polo team is set to compete in its home pool at Kinney Natatorium for the first time in 2024 when it hosts the three-day Bucknell Invitational. Sixteen games are on the docket starting Friday evening, and the Bison will play in four of them, three of which are opposite Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference rivals in Mount St. Mary's, No. 10 Fordham, and Wagner. The Bison will also host McKendree on Saturday evening. These are the first four of nine straight games at home for Bucknell.

Every game this weekend will be streamed live on YouTube. Visit our TOURNAMENT CENTRAL page for the complete schedule, watch links, and results as they come in.

BUCKNELL SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 20
Bucknell (2-5, 0-0 MAWPC) vs. Mount St. Mary's (2-7, 0-1 MAWPC) - 6 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 21
Bucknell (2-5, 0-0 MAWPC) vs. No. 10 Fordham (5-0, 0-0 MAWPC) - 3:20 p.m.
Bucknell (2-5, 0-0 MAWPC) vs.McKendree (0-4,0-0 WWPA) - 7:20 p.m.

Sunday, Sept. 22
Bucknell (2-5, 0-0 MAWPC) vs.Wagner (3-4, 0-0 MAWPC) -12 p.m.

About the Bison

The Bison last weekend competed at the Princeton Invitational, where they faced three nationally ranked teams and suffered losses to No. 15 Harvard (16-12), No. 19 Santa Clara (20-16), and No. 6 Princeton (17-7).
Bucknell's season record stands at 2-5, with all five losses coming against ranked opponents.
Freshman Tyler Hedblad scored seven goals against Santa Clara, the most by a Bucknell player so far this season. Hedblad leads the team with 18 goals through seven games, followed by Aleksa Stefanovic with 15, Matt Ryckman with 11, freshman Jovan Udovicic with 10, and Sean Tunnicliff and Shay Gillearn with nine each.
Goalkeeper David Dumitru made 11 saves against Harvard and six against Santa Clara, and he now has 44 on the season. Mateo Herrera got the call against Princeton and stopped eight shots.
Bucknell and Mount St. Mary's met twice in the regular season and once in the postseason in 2023. The Bison won a close one 15-13 in Emmitsburg, and then eight days later rolled 17-6 at Kinney behind four goals from Stefanovic. In the first round of the MAWPC Tournament, the Bison won 17-7 led by six goals from Andu Vlasceanu.
Mount St. Mary's went 1-3 at the Salem Invitational last weekend, with a victory over Mercyhurst (17-6) and losses to Gannon, LIU, and Salem. The Mountaineers currently hold a 2-7 record.
Fordham, the three-time defending MAWPC champion, has emerged as one of the top teams in the East in recent years. The Rams have moved up to No. 10 in the CWPA poll after starting a season 5-0 for the first time since 1973. Four of Fordham's five wins are against ranked teams, including victories over No. 11 UC San Diego (13-5) and No. 15 Harvard (16-15) last weekend at Princeton.
Fordham swept the Bison last season, winning 14-11 at the Bucknell Invitational and 16-12 in the Bronx. The Rams went on to beat Navy 12-10 in the MAWPC Tournament at Kinney Natatorium before falling to No. 2 Cal in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Bucknell last faced McKendree in 2022, winning 8-7 at the Bucknell Invitational and 12-3 the following weekend in Erie, Pa.
McKendree, located in Lebanon, Ill., recently lost 11-5 to Augustana and is 0-4 entering the weekend.

Next Up

The Bison will continue their homestand at Kinney Natatorium next Sunday, Sept. 29, facing Mercyhurst at 3 p.m.

Men’s Water Polo to Host 2024 Bucknell Invitational Starting Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

David Dumitru

Shay Gillearn

Tyler Hedblad

Mateo Herrera

Matt Ryckman

Aleksa Stefanovic

Sean Tunnicliff

Jovan Udovicic

Andu Vlasceanu

Men’s Water Polo to Host 2024 Bucknell Invitational Starting Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

David Dumitru

Shay Gillearn

Tyler Hedblad

Mateo Herrera

Matt Ryckman

Aleksa Stefanovic

Sean Tunnicliff

Jovan Udovicic

Andu Vlasceanu

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