LOS ANGELES — The Caltech men's water polo team competed in two tight contests on Friday as the squad took on Penn State Behrend and Ottawa University (Ariz.) as part of the Gary Troyer Tournament.

The Beavers took on the Penn State Behrend Lions in their first match of the day at 11:00 am. and came up just short by a score of 13-9. Despite the result, the squad had a number of impressive individual performances which kept the contest in reach. 

Junior goalkeeper Sujit Iyer (Marietta, Ga. / Wheeler) made nine impact saves in the match and came up big on the defensive side for Caltech. Junior center Bram Schork (Villanova, Pa. / The Haverford School) was a monster on both sides of the ball; on defense, the standout recorded six total steals — two more than Penn State Behrend recorded as a team over the entire game. Offensively, Schork fired off 12 shots and scored three goals.

Sophomore attacker Justin Hong (Pasadena, Calif. / Pasadena) got in on the action as an efficient scoring option, rattling the back of the cage three times on five shots. First-year utility Carl Crum (San Carlos, Calif. / Sacred Heart Preparatory) got on the board scoring two goals as well as first year attacker Maxwell Woodruff Vale (Austin, Texas / Liberal Arts and Science Academy) who scored a single goal.

The Beavers drew a season-high 13 exclusions while committing just three; the team stole the ball 11 times while the Lions recorded just four. Caltech was outscored in just one of the four quarters.

Caltech rested between matches and returned to the De Mandel Aquatics Center at 4:20 p.m. to take on the Spirit of Ottawa University.

Schork's hot hand carried over into the second match, as he scored another three goals in the contest. Crum and Hong scored in both matches as well, accounting for one goal each against the Spirit. Sophomore attacker Heramba Patil (Bellevue, Wash. / Interlake) and sophomore utility Axel Haydt (Austin, Texas / Westslake) both got on the scoresheet with a goal to add to the Beavers' total of seven. Iyer performed well in both matches, tallying another nine saves against the Spirit. It was a back-and-forth battle, but Caltech ultimately fell 7-12. 

The squad has the night to recover before returning to the De Mandel Aquatics Center tomorrow for the second day of the tournament for two matches against UC Merced and Westcliff.

Catch all of the Day 2 action at GoCaltech.com/coverage.