The University of Redlands men's water polo team recorded its first win of the 2010 season with an 11-7 showing against Whittier College in its final outing at the UC Irvine Invitational on Sunday. Earlier in the tournament, the Bulldogs suffered tough losses to the University of Southern California, Cal Baptist University, and Stanford University, before rallying for an important win over the Poets.

Against Whittier, the Maroon and Gray jumped out to a 5-3 lead after the first period. Redlands put up three more scores to gain an 8-3 advantage after two frames. Although the Poets out-scored the Bulldogs by a 4-3 margin in the final two periods, the victory was never in question for Redlands.

For the Bulldogs, junior driver Danny Boessenecker (Clayton, CA) posted a game-high three goals, while junior center-defender Andrew Smith-Jones (Annapolis, MD) supplied two netters. Six other players scored once in the win. Sophomore goalkeeper Jessie Gunther (Perris, CA) and freshman goalkeeper Tyler Abbott (Alta Loma, CA) shared time between the pipes, accumulating three and two saves, respectively.

Earlier that day, Redlands faced a talented Stanford squad and suffered a 5-23 loss. Senior center Blake vanHartesvelt (Mercer Island, WA), freshman driver Tucker Creevy (Crofton, MD), junior driver Cabot Ferrill (Poway, CA), sophomore driver Patrick Roth (Cottonwood Heights, UT) and Smith-Jones all found the back of the net.

On Saturday, the Maroon and Gray took on USC but came away with a 3-23 defeat. The Bulldogs gained two goals from senior center Brendan Meaney (Palm Desert, CA) and one score from junior driver Shane Anderson (Riverside, CA).

Redlands recorded a 6-12 loss to CBU in the team's second contest on Saturday. After knotting the score at three apiece in the first period, the Lancers blew it open with a 5-1 run in the second frame. Smith-Jones came up with a hat trick for the Bulldogs while senior driver Bo Sidhu (Indio, CA), Boessenecker and Meaney each scored once. Gunther and Abbot split time in the cage, garnering seven saves apiece.

The Bulldogs (1-3) look forward to hosting the Inland Empire Classic on Saturday and Sunday at the Thompson Aquatic Center at the University of Redlands. On Saturday, they host UC Davis at 9 a.m. and then Occidental College at 1:15 p.m. Play continues on Sunday with a 10:30 a.m. match against Vanguard University, which is followed by Caltech at 12 noon and Whittier College at 4:30 p.m.

For a complete tournament schedule, please log onto www.goredlands.com .