The University of Redlands men's water polo team put up a valiant fight against the fifth-seeded Air Force Academy in Saturday's consolation semifinal of the Western Water Polo Association Championships.  However, the eighth-seeded Bulldogs fell short of the upset in an 8-11 decision, propelling them into Sunday's seventh-place match against familiar foe Pomona-Pitzer Colleges.

Against the Falcons, Redlands competed well in a tight match that resulted in six ties. 

After the teams traded scores to make it four apiece with 3:20 to go in the second quarter, the Bulldogs gained a critical netter from sophomore center Grant Harrington (Poway, CA) for a slight edge at 5-4.

Redlands opened the third period with a 2-0 run when senior driver Danny Boessenecker (Clayton, CA) and senior driver Jeff Parsons (Newark, CA) fired off back-to-back goals.

However, the Falcons responded with three consecutive scores to finish out the stanza, tying it up at seven all.

The teams continued to battle through this back-and-forth contest, eventually evening the score at eight each. 

From here the Falcons took over, rattling off three unanswered goals to surge ahead and secure the win.

Redlands' senior center Blake vanHartesvelt (Mercer Island, WA) and Parsons provided the only multi-score effort with two each. 

Sophomore goalkeeper Tyler Abbott (Alta Loma, CA) came up with five saves in the loss.

Redlands (17-19) faces Pomona-Pitzer in the seventh-place match at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.