Broncos Sweep in Julian Fraser Tournament
Santa Clara wins tournament in memory of Frasers
Annika Tiña
The Santa Clara
October 25, 2018
In 2017, Bronco Julian Fraser, a member of the men’s water polo team, lost his battle to cancer. Members of this team, some of whom played with Fraser, honored their late teammate with an undefeated weekend.
Santa Clara’s Men’s Water Polo team went undefeated at the tournament they hosted this weekend. The annual three-day event was renamed last year from the Rodeo Tournament to the Julian Fraser Memorial Tournament, in memory of a Santa Clara student and team member who passed away after battling cancer in February 2017.
The Broncos began their exhilarating run in the tournament last Friday, scoring a season-high of 15 goals in a win against Harvard. Junior Shane Hughes, senior Reilley May and sophomore Jack Rottman led the offense with three goals each. Junior Mac Carey scored two and also had three assists.
The score was 14-13 with less than two minutes left in the final quarter—the small margin a result of Harvard’s Charlie Owens leading his team’s offense with five goals up until this point of the game. Firstyear Sean Tehaney delivered an essential play in the next possession to record 10 blocks.
The vital protection continued with a steal by senior Sam Toriggino and a block by Carey, which junior Patrick Kirk translated into an insurance goal with just 17 seconds remaining.
Santa Clara stayed dominant in the second day of the tournament, with wins against Wagner and Saint Francis Brooklyn.
In game one, Hughes achieved his career-high of five goals, while May tied his own career-high of four. The teams managed to tie the game 10 times, but in the fourth quarter, the Broncos pulled ahead.
After senior Dane Estrella, assisted by Carey, tied the game once more, Hughes scored two, and May secured a 13-10 victory in the final minute. Estrella tied his careerhigh of four assists. Tehaney, again, proved himself defensively with eight stops.
The Broncos’ game two win was a product of Carey and Hughes scoring a combined seven goals and Tehaney earning his career-high of 14 blocks.
Carey scored with just over two minutes left in the game to extend the one-goal lead, resulting in a 9-7 defeat of Saint Francis. Additionally, May tied his career-high when he drew six kickouts, after drawing three in the previous game.
“The thing about this tournament is that every team is good, and you know you’re going to be playing close games,” said Water Polo Head Coach Keith Wilbur in an interview with Santa Clara Athletics. “It’s important to play really well down the stretch. Three games in a row is a sign of good composure and hard work.”
The Broncos were looking forward to one more win to go undefeated in the tournament, but Bucknell did not make it easy for them. Despite Santa Clara’s 11-5 lead, Rade Jokismovic and Logan Schofield of Bucknell forced overtime, with Jokismovic tying the game in the very last second of regulation.
In the second OT session, Carey scored the game-winning goal from a five-meter penalty drawn by May. This was one of his two five-meter penalties in addition to five kickouts and two goals. On top of Carey’s four goals and three assists, Hughes scored five times and threw five assists.
Tehaney stayed hot in the net, tying his career-high in blocks just achieved the day before Santa Clara won 15-14.
Reilly May was subsequently named the Western Water Polo Association Player of the Week for his outstanding play throughout the tournament.
During Saturday’s victory against St. Francis, May also became Santa Clara’s all-time leader in earned ejections (200).
“This tournament means so much to our team, especially our fourth and fifth-year seniors who were teammates with Julian,” said Wilbur. “These last few days were important for all of us and it gave us so much extra effort. Playing well made it extra special, especially this last game. We are always thinking about Julian when we’re playing.”
Senior Jack Larkin, who played with Fraser, was proud of his team’s performance.
“The crowds were big and rowdy, and that definitely helped us find success in the pool,” Larkin said. “It was a great way to remember our friend Julian and play so well while honoring his memory”.
Contact Annika Tiña at aftina@ scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.