PASADENA, Calif. – The Caltech men's water polo team competed in its conference home opener on Saturday morning as the group battled the No. 7 Occidental College Tigers at Braun Pool.
The Beavers came prepared to take on Oxy on both sides of the ball. Junior center Bram Schork (Villanova, Pa. / The Haverford School) scored five goals in the game which provided a spark on offense, while junior goalkeeper Sujit Iyer (Marietta, Ga. / Wheeler) came up big for the defense and tallied total 10 total saves.
Caltech jumped out to an early lead as first-year utility Carl Crum (San Carlos, Calif. / Sacred Heart) drew an exclusion and gave the team its first powerplay. Sophomore attacker Justin Hong (Pasadena, Calif. / Pasadena) found Crum open in space who ripped a shot in the back of the cage and took advantage of the early chance.
Schork got involved in the scoring early and often, netting two back-to-back goals just 39 seconds apart which extended the Caltech lead to 3-1 midway through the first quarter. After a good offensive stretch by Oxy, Schork drew an exclusion and created a power play with four seconds remaining in the first quarter. He would prove to only need two of those seconds, firing in his third goal and sending the team into the second period down just two at 6-4.
Halfway through the second period, sophomore attacker Joshua Braun (Bakersfield, Calif. / Garces Memorial) got an open look and scored on the chance. The team fought hard the rest of the quarter and found themselves in a similar situation in the final seconds before halftime. This time, Schork drew a penalty shot and yet again rattled a goal into the cage with two seconds remaining on the clock. The Beavers trailed 11-6 going into the break.
Oxy took control early in the third quarter, but the Beavers weren't done fighting. First-year attacker Maxwell Woodruff Vale (Austin, Texas / Liberal Arts and Science Academy) fed an assist to Crum who finished off the play with a score. Schork kept his period closing goal streak alive, scoring once again with five seconds left in the third, which would be his fifth and final goal of the contest.
The squad tallied one more goal in the match. Just over two minutes into the final quarter of play, Crum netted his third goal to bring the score within eight. The Beavers shot the ball well against the Tigers scoring nine goals on 25 attempted shots, ultimately falling to the nationally-ranked foe, 20-9.
Caltech will now prepare for its next set of matches at the De Mandel Aquatics Center as part of the Gary Troyer Tournament at Occidental College. The team will compete on Friday, Oct. 4 at 11:00 a.m. and 4:20 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 5 at 9:20 a.m. and 2:40 p.m.
Follow Caltech Water Polo on Instagram and follow Caltech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram.
