No. 14 Falcons split two games, beat Navy

Sept. 26, 2015

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - The Air Force water polo team, ranked 14^th in the nation, split a pair of games Saturday, Sept. 26, in Malibu, Calif. Air Force opened the day with a 17-11 win over service academy rival Navy. The Falcons then battled ninth-ranked Pepperdine in a tight game, before falling to the Waves, 14-10.

In the first game, Eric Curia and Justin Harrison each scored four goals to help lead the Falcons to their first win over Navy since 2000, snapping a 10-game losing streak vs. the Mids. Navy scored first, but the Falcons battled back with four straight goals by Curia, Robby Stiefel, Riley Thomas and Harrison. Navy cut the Falcon lead to 7-5, but goals by Stiefel, Harrison and two by Curia gave the Falcons an 11-6 lead at the intermission. Air Force outscored Navy, 6-5 in the second half for the 17-11 win. In addition to Curia and Harrison, Garrett Fisk had three goals. Stiefel had game highs of five assists and six steals to go along with two goals. Max Benson had 10 saves.

In the second game, Pepperdine scored the first three goals before the Falcons got on the board with a goal by Curia late in the first. Goals by Harrison and Curia in the second quarter tied the game at 3-3. The teams traded goals before the Waves scored two late goals in the second quarter for an 8-5 lead at the half. Each team scored two in the third quarter and the Falcons trailed 10-7 at the end of three. Thomas' goal at 5:14 of the fourth quarter cut the Waves lead to 11-9. However, Pepperdine outscored the Falcons 3-1 in the final five minutes for the 14-10 win. Curia led the Falcons with four goals, netting eight on the day. Harrison and Oliver Carter each had two. Fisk led the Falcons with two assists and Stiefel had a team-high three steals. Caleb Guarino made eight saves.

Air Force closes out the four-game road trip against Whittier College, Sunday, Sept. 27, at noon PT.

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9/26/2015 vs. Navy, Malibu, Calif.

Goals by Qtr. 1 2 3 4 Final

#14 Air Force 4 7 3 3 17

#16 Navy 1 5 2 3 11

Starters: Leiter, Fisk, Rogers, Curia, Thomas, Stiefel, Benson
Played: Kamai, Carter, Harrison, Smet, Quinlan, Lee, Millard, Colas, McCarthy, Niederland, Dorris, Guarino
Goals (17): Curia 4, Harrison 4, Fisk 3, Stiefel 2, Thomas 2, Millard 1, Smet 1
Assists (10): Stiefel 5, Carter 1, Curia 1, Rogers 1, Niederland 1, Leiter 1
Steals (15): Stiefel 6, Thomas 3, Curia 2, Quinlan 1, Rogers 1, Guarino 1, Benson 1
Goals Against (11): Benson 11

Saves (10): Benson 10

6-on-5: AF 6/10; NAVY 2/7 Penalties: Navy 1-1

9/26/2015 vs. Pepperdine, Malibu, Calif.

Goals by Qtr. 1 2 3 4 Final

#14 Air Force 1 4 2 3 10

#9 Pepperdine 3 5 2 4 14

Starters: Leiter, Fisk, Rogers, Curia, Thomas, Stiefel, Guarino
Played: Kamai, Carter, Harrison, Smet, Quinlan, Lee
Goals (10): Curia 4, Carter 2, Harrison 2, Rogers 1, Thomas 1
Assists (7): Fisk 2, Quinlan 1, Stiefel 1, Lee 1, Curia 1, Thomas 1
Steals (10): Stiefel 3, Guarino 3, Curia 2, Thomas 2
Goals Against (10): Guarino 10

Saves (8): Guarino 8

6-on-5: AF 5/11; PEP 5/12; Penalties: AF 2/2

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Players Mentioned

Max Benson

Oliver Carter

Eric Curia

Garrett Fisk

Caleb Guarino

Justin Harrison

Robby Stiefel

Riley Thomas

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