Bucknell University
Brown
Water Polo Splits Final Day of Bruno Classic
8/31/2025 2:05:00 PM | Men's Water Polo
PROVIDENCE, R.I.- Bucknell men's water polo (1-3) split the final day of the Bruno Classic, losing 19-11 to No. 17 Brown (3-0) and edging Iona (1-2) 16-15 on Sunday. The Bison never led against Brown and held on to win against Iona's hard-charging rally.
Brown Recap
Seven different Bison, led by Tyler Hedblad's three tallies, scored goals, but the Brown offense proved too insurmountable for the Bucknell defense.
The Bears roared out to a 4-0 lead before Jovan Udovicie broke their streak. Udovicie scored again but Brown added two more goals for the 6-2 lead.
Bucknell's offense sparked in the second period, scoring four goals, including two by Hedblad. However, the deficit grew up as Brown repeated its first quarter output.
The third period was an even affair with both teams tallying twice. Aleksa Stefanovic and Kai Johnson each provided a cage-finder.
Three Bison scored in the final period but any late rally proved impossible with Brown tallying five goals for the 19-11 victory.
Iona Recap
Nine Bison tallied goals, as Sean Tunnicliff led the way with three scores.
Iona started the game with a 2-0 lead and kept ahead 4-2 before the Bison scored twice off goals by Andrew Hunyady and Stefanovic.Â
Bucknell's scoring run stretched into the second quarter and move to a 5-0 spread before Iona shattered it. The Orange & Blue tallied another cage-finder before the halftime bell rang.Â
The third quarter witnessed a flurry of scoring with both teams scoring five goals. Iona cut the deficit to 11-10 before Bucknell ended the period on a 2-0 run.Â
The Bison stretched their lead to 15-10. Iona scored twice. Jack Murad added an insurance goal which proved decisive, as the Gaels made a late rally, scoring three straight goals. Iona had one final chance with seven seconds remaining but its final goal was a harmless bouncer and was easily swatted away.Â
Up Next
Bucknell heads to the Princeton Invite next weekend and faces No. 18 Harvard, No. 10Â Princeton, and No. 1 UCLA.Â
