Home Sweet Home: Stags Take Two in Axelrood Pool

CLAREMONT, Calif. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men's water polo team hosted their first match of the 2017 season against the Caltech Beavers on Saturday afternoon, winning its home opener 14-6. The Stags followed-up their early morning victory with an 18-9 win over Riverside Community College in the nightcap of the split-doubleheader for CMS.

CMS defeats CalTech – 14-6

The Stags managed to break past the Beavers' defense with quick passing and aggressive counterattack plays. Noah Deer (CMC) led the Stags with three goals while Christian Thornton (CMC), Nick Britt (CMC), and Ethan Lewis (CMC) each had two goals. Koss Klobucher (CMC) and Peter Tilton (CMC) each scored a goal and combined for seven steals.

Deer quickly got the Stags on the board less than 40 seconds into the game, following a defensive stand to start off the game. Caltech scored less than a minute later to tie the match at 1-1, but CMS responded with a 6-0 run that spanned between the first and second quarters and gave the Stags a 7-1 lead. During the run, five different Stags found the back of the net. Caltech found a pair of goals in the final two minutes of the half, but CMS took an 8-3 lead into the half.

The second-half was more of the same from CMS. The Stags steadily built their lead across the third and fourth quarters, eventually wining the match by a 14-6 final. In the match, CMS effectively killed off penalties. The Stags held Caltech to just 1-7 on power plays, while scoring on three of their five attempts.

CMS defeats Riverside – 18-9

Much like the morning's match, the Stags controlled play against Riverside. CMS held a 4-3 lead after the first quarter before exploding for seven goals in the second-quarter to take a comfortable 11-5 lead into the half. After a strong third period for Riverside, the Stags outscored the Tigers 6-1 in the fourth quarter to secure the 18-9 victory.

In the match the Stags went 6-11 on power plays while holding the Tigers to just a 2-5 mark on their opportunities.

With two victories on Saturday, the Stags improve to 3-5 on the season. CMS will now take an extended break from competition, before traveling across the street to take on the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens at 7:00 p.m.