Falcons Back in Action at the Convergence Tournament
10/6/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Water Polo
Oct. 6, 2010
The Air Force water polo team returns to action this weekend, Oct. 8-9, at the Convergence Tournament, hosted by Pomona-Pitzer, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and La Verne. The Falcons play two games on Friday at 18th-ranked Pomona, taking on the host Sagehens at 2:00 p.m. (PT), followed by a contest versus Cal Lutheran at 6:00 p.m. Meanwhile, Air Force will face Harvard on Saturday with an 11:40 a.m. game at La Verne.
The Falcons also play on Sunday, Oct. 10, as they visit third-ranked UC Irvine in a non-conference match-up at Anteater Pool in Irvine.
Last Time Out...
Air Force, which has been off from competition for the past two weekends, was last in action Sept. 18-20. The Falcons suffered four losses at the prestigious NorCal Open, before dropping a tough decision to UC Davis on the road.
Senior captain Bobby Geiger paced Air Force's offense on the weekend, scoring 12 goals and five assists, entering the Academy's top-10 list in career points scored and the top-five list for career goals. Meanwhile, classmate Kurt Lemmen added 10 points (8g, 2a) and sophomore Cruz Smithson (6g, 3a) pitched in nine points.
Scouting the Falcons...
The Air Force Falcons enter this weekend with a 3-8 overall record, including a 3-5 mark in the Western Water Polo Association.
Senior Bobby Geiger leads the team with 28 points on the season, including a team-best 23 goals. Senior Kurt Lemmen is second on the team with 18 points (12g, 6a), while classmate Kurt Wallin has registered a team-high 14 assists.
Scouting the Sagehens...
The Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens, ranked 18th in the latest national poll, enter this weekend with a 5-7 overall record and 2-2 mark against WWPA competition. The Sagehens won a pair of games last weekend, knocking off then-12th-ranked St. Francis, 8-6, and defeating Vanguard, 9-8.
Pomona-Pitzer is coached by Alex Rodriguez, in his sixth year at the helm of the program. Among the offensive leaders for the Sagehens are seniors Ben Hadley and Ryan Balikian, who have tallied 19 and 18 goals, respectively, on the season.
Scouting the Kingsmen...
The Cal Lutheran Kingsmen enter this weekend with a 2-9 overall record. The Kingsmen were last in action at the Lancer Invitational on Sept. 24, going 1-1 in the tournament.
Cal Lutheran is coached by Craig Rond, in his eighth year at the helm of the program. Among the leaders for the Kingsmen is returning All-American Brandon Gross.
Scouting the Crimson...
The Harvard Crimson enter this weekend's tournament with a 4-8 overall record after capturing a 10-8 victory over MIT last weekend.
Harvard is coached by Ted Minnis, in his first year at the helm of the program. Seniors Jeff Lee and Alex Thompson lead the Crimson offense with 19 goals each, while goalkeeper Alexandre Popp has registered 103 saves on the season.
Scouting the Anteaters...
The UC Irvine Anteaters, ranked third in the nation, currently hold a 10-3 overall record and will visit No. 13 Pepperdine before hosting Air Force on Sunday. The Anteaters are coming off a third-place finish at the SoCal Tournament, which included a win over then-third-ranked Cal.
UC Irvine is coached by Marc Hunt, in his sixth year leading the program. Brandon Johnson leads UCI in scoring with 30 goals, followed by Griffin Lerman with 24.
Series Records...
This weekend's meeting between Air Force and Pomona-Pitzer is the 18th in the all-time series. The Falcons lead the series, 16-1, with the lone loss coming earlier this season at the NorCal Open.
Air Force holds a 3-0 record all-time against Cal Lutheran, with the last meeting a 14-5 road victory in 2009.
Saturday's game between Air Force and Harvard will be the fifth in the series between the two teams, with the Falcons undefeated against the Crimson. The teams last met in 2007, with Air Force taking a 12-4 victory.
On Sunday, Air Force and UC Irvine will meet for the 17th time in the series, and the first since 2003. The Anteaters, who lead the series 15-1, won that contest, 7-5.
In the Record Books...
With his strong offensive performance at the NorCal Open, senior captain Bobby Geiger moved up in the Academy record books, taking over 10th place on the all-time scoring list with 230 career points (170g, 60a). Geiger needs just two more points to move into a tie for ninth place.
Meanwhile, Geiger also ranks among the top-five goal scorers in school history, as his 170 career goals rate as the fourth-most at the Academy.
Up Next...
The Falcons play three games next week, Oct. 16-17, first visiting Loyola Marymount in a conference match-up. Air Force will also compete in the Concordia Tournament, facing WWPA foe Redlands on Saturday, while taking on Fresno Pacific on Sunday.
