For the fourth year in a row, the No. 17 men's water polo team took second place in the Northern Division Championship, falling to St. Francis in the championship game. Last weekend, the first-seeded Bears took down Connecticut College, 12-8, and MIT, 11-4, on Saturday to make it to Sunday's championship game. In the end, though, second-seeded St. Francis toppled the Bears, 15-5.
"Once again, always a bridesmaid, never a bride," Assistant Coach John McBride said. "It was a very disappointing loss, but St. Francis played a great game. They came out and beat us, no excuses."
Despite missing key starter Hank Weintraub '09 because of injury, Brown started off the weekend strong, taking a 6-1 lead over Connecticut College in the first eight minutes of play. The Camels were able to notch a few more goals in the remaining three quarters, but the Bears stayed ahead of them, scoring another six goals en route to the 12-8 victory.
The win was a team effort for the Bears, with goals coming from seven different players, veterans and freshman alike. Nico Fort '09, Mike Gartner '09, Marcus Gartner '12, Corey Schwartz '11 and Robby Yass '12 were among those to score, netting two goals each. Max Lubin '12 played a solid game in goal, earning 11 saves over the four quarters.
In their second game of the day, Bruno continued to dominate, drowning MIT by a score of 11-4. The game started off close as the Engineers held their ground, limiting the Bears to a slim two-goal lead at the half. But the third quarter showed a change in the tides as Brown took off on a five-goal scoring spree that proved to be too much for MIT to overcome.
Gordon Hood '11 led the Brown offense, scoring five of the Bears' 11 goals, followed by Mike Gartner and captain Grant LeBeau '09, who scored two goals apiece. Kent Holland '10 led the team from the cage, tallying 10 saves in the game. This win earned Brown a spot in the championship game, to face off against St. Francis.
Earlier this season Brown took down St. Francis, 9-8, marking St. Francis' first loss in regular season league play in six years. This time, however, the Terriers were ready to fight back.
"St. Francis didn't play the same way that they had played when we had beaten them earlier in the year," McBride said. "They're a team that is going full speed in every game and if you don't keep up, you won't win."
The Terriers jumped up on the Bears at the start, taking an early 9-3 lead. In the second half Brown continued to generate opportunities but failed to convert them into goals. The Bears, down Weintraub, one of their key offensive players, drew 17 ejections throughout the game but were only able to score on two. Adding to its struggles, Brown's missed shots on man-up offense led to counterattack goals by St. Francis. St. Francis continued to chip away at the Bears' defense in the final minutes of the game, scoring four in the fourth quarter for the 15-5 victory.
"We correct a few mistakes, we get Hank back, and it's a different game," said LeBeau.
LeBeau led the scoring for Brown with three goals, while Mike Gartner added one goal and drew eight of the 17 ejections and Hood tossed in another goal for the Bears. In the cage, Holland logged seven saves and two steals.
"We had some defensive breakdowns," said Schwartz. "But when we did things right we would score on them, when we followed our game plan we were in charge."
Up next, the Bears travel to Annapolis, Md., to the Naval Academy for the Eastern Championships. Seeded fourth, the men will take on fifth-seeded Johns Hopkins in their first game on Nov. 21. Their only chance at meeting St. Francis again is in the championship game.
"We're just going to work hard the next two weeks and see what happens," McBride said. "This year is the best chance we've had at making the NCAA tournament since I've been at Brown. If our A-team shows up, then we'll beat everybody."
