M. Water Polo Suffers Letdown in 10-9 Loss to MIT

After an impressive showing this weekend in New York, the Harvard men's water polo team (3-7) entered last night's contest against MIT riding a wave of confidence and with expectations of victory. Instead, after a hard fought battle against the Engineers, they left Blodgett Pool dealing with a 10-9 setback, feeling as if victory had been stolen from their grasp.

The team opened the game running on all cylinders, and for a while it looked like the well-oiled machine that won three games at the Fordham Invitational in Bronx, N.Y. The Crimson jumped out to a 4- lead at the end of the first quarter on the strength of great team play and two goals by captain Mike Zimmerman.

Also contributing to the early onslaught were sophomore Jeremy Katz and freshman standout Mike Crosby, as both Crimson players netted goals in the quarter.

"We looked very good in the first quarter--the team was looking for each other and making plays as a team," said Coach Jim Floerchinger.

As the game dragged on, however, whatever early optimism the Crimson had disintegrated into missed opportunities and a string of costly ejections. Up 5-2 with six minutes left in the second quarter, miscue after miscue allowed MIT to climb back into the game, as sophomore Kraig Salveson, freshman Michael Crosby and senior Tom Chalberg were ejected on consecutive plays.

The three resulting man-up situations translated into three MIT goals, and with 45 seconds to go before the half, the Engineers had cut the lead to 6-5 and were threatening to tie the game. Only a gorgeous sweep shot by Zimmerman from the 2-meter position salvaged a 7-5 lead going into the half.

The mistakes did not stop there as the Crimson missed numerous scoring chances in the third quarter. It seemed as if Harvard could do whatever it wanted, except stick the ball in the goal.

"We just stopped executing," Floerchinger said.

With the Crimson unable to put the ball in the net, it did not help that the MIT goalie seemed to hit his rhythm in the third quarter, at one point blocking five straight shots. With Harvard's offensive ineptitude hitting its high in the quarter, the only thing keeping MIT from taking the lead was the Crimson's excellent defense and the play of sophomore driver-turned-goalie Josh Bliesath. As his counterpart turned back shot after shot, Bliesath responded by blocking four straight shots of his own.

The third quarter ended scoreless for both teams and the Crimson maintained their 7-5 lead.

Despite all of the Crimson's offensive miscues and costly ejections, things were still looking up, as it held a two-goal lead going into the final and decisive quarter. But as ugly as the game was in the second and third quarters, it only got worse in the fourth as MIT tied the game right away on a two-point shot that was lobbed in as the shot clock expired.

After Zimmerman broke the tie with a backhand shot, the lead was once again given away by another ejection as the Engineers took advantage of the defensive lapse to tie the score.

With the score tied 8-8, Zimmerman, trying in vain to carry his team to victory, scored again after turning his man and firing a shot into the left corner. However, another Harvard defensive mistake left an MIT player wide open and he forgave not, as he put the Engineers ahead with a two-point shot that gave them a 10-9 lead with 1:25 left in the game.

Unable to do anything offensively, Floerchinger called a timeout with 13 seconds left for one last shot. But in a fitting end to a heartbreaking game, the ball was stolen before a shot could be fired.

"It shouldn't have come down to a last second shot; we should of been ahead by more than enough," said a disappointed Zimmerman.

"We were lazy," Floerchinger said. "We are capable of so much better. We gave them the game tonight; they didn't win, we dropped it."