BC Sunk By Men's H20 Polo

The Harvard men's water polo team defeated an outmatched Boston College squad, 11-9, Tuesday at Blodgett Pool.

The victory raised the Crimson's record to 3-1 in Head Coach Don Benson's maiden season.

The Eagles proved a worthier opponent than expected and took advantage of a sluggish Crimson start, holding a 76 lead after one half.

"We opened up a little flat," Benson said. "And like most teams [Boston College was] really fired up to play us."

A combination of the Eagles' intensity and the Crimson's early flat play propelled BC to the intermission advantage.

The Crimson woke up after the break and rebounded in the second half, outscoring the Eagles, 5-2.

The comeback was bolstered by the solid play of freshman goalie Eddie Chen, who replaced senior netminder Jeb Miller to start the second half.

"Eddie played an outstanding second half," Benson said. "Right now we'll probably be rotating Jeb and Eddie, either by half or by game. But that really depends on the situation."

Offensively, the Crimson was led by co-captain Jose Busquets and junior Julian Alexander, who scored three goals each.

Harvard can use the victory over BC for some encouragement as the team heads into this weekend's tournament at Annapolis, where the competition includes highly ranked Navy and Bucknell.

"Despite the close score, we are improving fundamentally," Benson said. "Our ball-handling is better than before, and we're generating offense from a larger variety of players."

Although the upcoming tournament does not affect bids for the Eastern Championships, which Harvard will host November 5-6, the Crimson is eager to test its mettle against the best.