Whittier College Men's Water Polo kicked off its 2008 campaign
at the Inland Empire Classic hosted by Redlands and La Verne on
September 13 and 14. The Poets went 1-3 on the weekend,
losing to Redlands 17-8 and University of the Pacific 12-5 on day
one. On day two, they lost 5-3 to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps then
bounced back with a 4-3 victory over La Verne.
The Poets opened the weekend against nationally ranked #1,
Redlands. Will Jackson '11 led the Poet offense with three
goals and one assist. Wes Paulson '12 scored twice for the
Poets and Cameron Lew '12 was credited with three assists.
Chris Villanueva '09 scored one goal and assisted on another.
In goal, Casey Regehr '12 made ten saves in his first collegiate
start.
Against Division I opponent University of the Pacific, Villanueva
led the scoring with four of the five Poet goals. Jackson
tallied the other. Lincoln Haley '12 handed out two
assists. Regehr made 13 saves in goal, seven in the third
quarter alone.
Day two brought a pair of familiar foes for the Poets. SCIAC
rival Claremont-Mudd-Scripps was the first game of the day.
Regehr continued to show his skills in goal, this time with 15
saves. The Poet defense held the Stags to just five
goals. Unfortunately, the Poet offense scored just three
times. Jackson and Lew each finished with a goal and an
assist. Villanueva finished with the only other Poet
goal.
The final game of the weekend was against La Verne. In
another low-scoring battle, Regehr allowed just three goals and
made 14 saves. Lew paced the offense with two goals and an
assist. Alexander Hernandez '12 and Jonathan Pony '12
finished with a goal apiece. Jackson and Villanueva were
credited with assists.
The Poets travel to Thousand Oaks, Calif., for the California
Lutheran University Invitational on September 20 and 21. The
weekend starts against Fresno Pacific (9:30am) and Concordia
(1:15pm) on the 20th.
