Pictured Above: Senior Co-Captain Lachlan Trabinger
 
Boston, MA – The Wagner men's water polo team suffered a pair of losses to No. 14 Bucknell and MIT on Saturday in the Harvard Invite. They opened the day losing a 10-8 decision to Bucknell, before falling by a 7-5 count to MIT in the afternoon finale.

The Seahawks will wrap up the three-day invitational on Sunday going up against No. 20 St. Francis-Brooklyn at 1:00 p.m.

No. 14 Bucknell 10, Wagner 8
The Green & White, who battled the Bison throughout, trailed by one at the end of the opening quarter, 3-2. Bucknell struck first and led three different times, but twice the Seahawks responded with goals by Olivér Fodor and Matthew Miller. 
 
Miller would strike again in the first minutes of the second quarter to tie the game up at three goals apiece, however, Bucknell would record two more goals before the halftime break to enter the locker rooms leading Wagner 5-3. 
 
In the third quarter, Wagner would close the gap to one, to enter the fourth quarter down 7-6. Goals from Fodor, Miller, and Aaron Leighton would keep the Green & White within striking distance entering the final stanza.
 
Goals from Fodor and Jordi Alonso would tie the game twice in the final quarter, setting the score at 8-8 with only 4 minutes and 28 seconds remaing. However, two goals in the final minutes from 2018 Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference (MAWPC) East Region Player of the Year, Rade Joksimovic would be the deciding factor, as the Bison defeated the Seahawks 10-8. 
 
The Bison were led by Andu Vlasceanu and his game high five goals. Bucknell's only other two goal scorers were Joksimovic and Logan Schofield, who recorded three and two goals, respectively. An impressive performance in goal by Adrien Touzot was what truly propelled the Bison over the Seahawks, as he recorded 16 saves to hold the Green & White at bay in the final minutes. 

The win extends Bucknell's winning streak to seven as the Bison improve to 13-2 overall and 6-1 in conference games this season. 

MIT 7, Wagner 5
In the afternoon matchup, the Seahawks and Engineers combined for 12 goals, five less than the 17 managed by MIT in the first matchup between the two schools on Sept. 7, a 17-11 win in favor of the Engineers. After an explosive first period, that saw seven of an eventual game total 12 goals scored, the two teams settled into their defensive halves.
 
MIT jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, before Miller responded for the Green & White. After another Engineer goal extended their lead back to two, Alonso found the back of the net to shrink it back down to a single goal again. Lachlan Trabinger would find the net with only 16 seconds remaining in the period, after another MIT goal, to send the teams into the second period with the Engineers leading 4-3. 
 
From that point the game became much more methodical, as the teams tried to break through their opponent's defense. MIT struck twice in the second quarter, while Wagner was held scoreless. The third period was the direct inverse, as the Seahawks struck twice, with goals from Miller and Leighton, to enter the final period down 6-5. 
 
In the final period, only a singular goal would be scored by either team, as MIT scored the dagger with a minute and 19 seconds remaining to defeat the Green & White by the final score of 7-5. 
 
The Engineers were led by a pair of goals from Ward Weldon and Miller Geschke, while Kevin Downey, Pat Stefanou, and Sawyer Koetters each found the back of the cage once. 
 
WHAT'S NEXT FOR WAGNER
The Seahawks will be back in the pool tomorrow afternoon to wrap up the Harvard Invite, going up against No. 20 St. Francis-Brooklyn at 1:00 p.m.
 
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