Falcons Head to Santa Clara for The Rodeo
10/20/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Water Polo
Oct. 20, 2010
The Air Force water polo team returns to action this weekend, Oct. 23-24, as it heads to The Rodeo, hosted by WWPA rival Santa Clara. On the first day of the tournament, the Falcons are slated to face Bucknell and Brown, which are tied for 20th in the national rankings, while taking on conference foes UC Davis (ranked 11th) and Santa Clara (ranked 13th) on Sunday.
Last Time Out...
Air Force posted a 2-0 record at last weekend's Concordia Invitational, defeating Redlands, 10-8, and Fresno Pacific, 10-5. Meanwhile, the Falcons opened the weekend with a 9-3 loss to 10th-ranked Loyola Marymount in a conference road game.
Once again, senior captain Bobby Geiger led the Falcons' offense, scoring five goals in each of the Air Force victories, while also adding a goal versus Loyola Marymount. Meanwhile, sophomore goalkeeper Mike Fish registered 23 saves in the Falcons' two wins and added eight more stops in three periods of action against LMU.
Scouting the Falcons...
The Air Force Falcons, receiving votes in this week's coaches poll, enter this weekend with a 7-11 overall record, including a 4-7 mark in the Western Water Polo Association.
Senior Bobby Geiger leads the team with 51 points on the season, including a team-best 44 goals. Freshman Josh Stedman is second on the team with 28 points (18g, 10a), while senior Kurt Wallin has registered a team-high 19 assists.
Scouting the Bison...
The Bucknell Bison, tied for 20th in the latest national poll, enter this weekend with an 8-10 overall record. The Bison are coming off a 9-4 victory over then-17th-ranked Princeton.
Bucknell is coached by John Abdou, in his third year at the helm of the program. Richie Hyden paces the Bison offense with a team-best 60 points on the season, leading Bucknell in both goals (38) and assists (22). Meanwhile, Howie Kalter is second on the team with 27 goals and 19 assists.
Scouting the Bears...
The Brown Bears, tied for 20th in the latest national poll, enter this weekend with a 13-4 overall record. The Bears were in action last week, posting a 12-9 victory over Harvard.
Brown is coached by Felix Mercado, in his fourth season at the helm of the program. The Bears' leading scorer is sophomore Svetozar Stefanovic, who has registered 35 goals on the season, while freshman James McNamara is second with 30 goals.
Scouting the Aggies...
The UC Davis Aggies, currently ranked 11th in the coaches poll, enter this weekend's tournament with a 12-6 overall record and a perfect 11-0 mark in the WWPA. The Aggies split a pair of games last weekend, defeating UC San Diego, while falling to Pepperdine.
UC Davis is coached by Steve Doten, in his 10th season at the helm of the program. Junior Aaron Salit leads the Aggies with 34 goals on the year, while senior Matt Richardson is first on the team with 40 points, including a team-best 21 assists.
Scouting the Broncos...
The Santa Clara Broncos, ranked 13th in this week's coaches poll, enter this weekend with a 13-6 overall record and 6-5 mark in the WWPA. The Broncos are coming off a 10-7 loss to conference foe UC San Diego.
Santa Clara is coached by Keith Wilbur, in his ninth year leading the program. James Case is the Broncos' leading goal scorer with 41 goals on the season, while Daley Meistrell leads the team in total points with 60, including a team-best 43 assists.
Series Records...
This weekend's meeting between Bucknell and Air Force will be the 10th in series history, with the Bison holding a slight 5-4 edge in the series. Air Force won the last meeting between the two teams, an 8-6 decision in 2007.
This weekend, Air Force and Brown meet for the 18th time in the series, with the Falcons leading, 9-8. The two teams met last season, as Air Force came away with an 9-8 overtime victory.
The conference match-up between Air Force and UC Davis will be the 62nd in the overall series between the two teams, and the second this season. While the Falcons lead the series, 36-25, UC Davis has won six of the last seven meetings, including a 7-4 decision earlier this season.
Finally, this weekend will mark the 43rd meeting in the all-time series between Air Force and Santa Clara. The Falcons lead the series, 33-9, but the Broncos have won three straight, including both contests in 2009.
In the Record Books...
Senior captain Bobby Geiger continues to move up in the Academy record books, and is currently in seventh place on the all-time scoring list with 253 career points (191g, 62a). Geiger needs just two more points to move into a tie for sixth place.
Meanwhile, Geiger also ranks among the top-five goal scorers in school history, as his 191 career goals rate as the fourth-most at the Academy.
Air Force Athlete of the Week...
Senior Bobby Geiger became the first Air Force water polo player this season to earn Air Force Athlete of the Week honors, following his performance at the Concordia Invitational. Geiger helped lead the Falcons to a perfect record at the tournament, scoring 10 goals in two games. Geiger registered five scores in the Falcons' 10-8 victory over conference foe Redlands on Saturday, while adding five goals in Air Force's 10-5 win over Fresno Pacific on Sunday. The team captain, who also scored one of Air Force's three goals against 10th-ranked Loyola Marymount, moved into seventh place on the Falcons' all-time scoring list with 253 career points.
Up Next...
The Falcons close out the regular season Nov. 5-8, with five games over a four-day stretch. Air Force will visit Cal Baptist on Nov. 5, while playing Concordia and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Nov. 6. On Nov. 7, the Falcons play at La Verne, while wrapping up the roadswing with a trip to UCLA on Nov. 8.
