COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.--- Biola men's water polo responded with an offensive outburst Saturday evening, defeating Occidental 20-15 at Cadet Natatorium as part of the Air Force Rare Air Invitational.
The Eagles came out strong, building a 5-2 lead after the opening period. Ryder Imbriani and Gavin Starling put Biola on the board first before Kyle Seifen converted on a power play. Kacper Landowski and Ivan Tkach added goals late in the quarter to give BU a three-goal advantage after one.
Biola continued to create separation in the second quarter, pouring in seven more goals. Isaac Demski, Aiden Ortiz and Jayden Rose opened the scoring for the Eagles before Noah Ryznar struck twice. Landon Heuer and Imbriani added late goals to send Biola into halftime with a 12-6 lead.
Occidental tried to cut into the deficit in the third, but the Eagles answered with six goals of their own. Xander Trevitt and Ortiz each found the back of the cage before Imbriani completed his hat trick. Tkach followed with two more goals to secure a hat trick of his own, and Kevin Slack added another with 16 seconds remaining to give Biola an 18-11 advantage heading into the fourth.
The Tigers made a push in the final period, but Biola's lead proved too large to overcome. Micah Hernandez and Slack connected on back-to-back power plays to push the Eagles to the 20-goal mark before Occidental scored the final three goals of the match.
Tkach and Imbriani led Biola with three goals apiece, while Ryznar, Slack and Ortiz each added two. In total, 13 different Eagles found the back of the cage in the win. Ryznar, Demski and Landowski each added an assist.Â
Cooper Smith played all 32 minutes in goal for Biola, finishing with six saves and two steals.
Biola improved to 4-9 on the season and continues play at the Air Force Rare Air Invitational on Sunday.
Â
