California Baptist University
Princeton
PRINCETON REVIEW
9/11/2010 2:40:00 AM | Men's Water Polo
by Chris Baker, CBU sports information graduate intern
PRINCETON, N.J. --- Senior driver Aaron Steiger stole the spotlight from tournament host Princeton as California Baptist University, ranked No. 17 in the CWPA Coaches' Top 20 poll, defeated the 18th-ranked Tigers, 11-5, in the first game of the Princeton Tournament.
Steiger, the Lancers' all-time steals leader, added six to his record while scoring three goals in the first of two opening day matches at the Princeton Invitational. The Lancers also defeated Iona, 20-5, in their second match of the day.
With the opening day sweep, the Lancers improve to 4-1.
"This is a good start to this tournament," said Head Coach, Rick Rowland. "It's a pretty good win against the tournament host and an NCAA Final Four team from last year."
The match was tight in the first half as both teams alternated goals, until CBU pulled ahead to take a 5-3 halftime lead. However, the Lancers took advantage of their opportunities scoring on four of their five man-up situations.
The defense was stout; giving up only two goals in the second half while combing for 17 total steals.
Brent Troutman and David Rodriguez helped lead the way with three and two goals, respectively. Sophomore goalie Austin Ramer slowed down the Princeton attack, blocking a penalty shot in the fourth quarter for one of his seven saves and allowing just five Tiger goals.
The offensive game was balanced as six different CBU players scored a goal. It was the third straight win following their opening season loss to No. 5 UC-Irvine.
The nightcap was much of the same as CBU made it four in a row after trouncing the Iona Gaels, 20-5. Steiger had another impressive showing with four goals, three assists and three drawn ejections. As was the case against Princeton, all 17 players played, three of which had three or more goals against the Gaels.
Ramer saved ten shots and tallied three steals and three assists.
"I really didn't expect this type of performance today," said Rowland. "The guys were just ready to go and they took it to both Princeton and Iona. Austen (Ramer) was really the MVP of the Iona match. He did everything from making big saves to setting teammates up for goals. The depth of our team is probably as good as it's ever been."
The Lancers will hope continue their dominance tomorrow in matches against Harvard (9 a.m.) and Johns Hopkins (6 p.m.).
