Alpha Sigma Phi’s Nicholas Pray brings the ball up with junior teammate James Nance, during an intramural water polo match against Lambda Chi Alpha Sunday.
Alpha Sigma Phi closed out the last day of intramural inner tube water polo with two wins Sunday, giving the men a second consecutive undefeated season.
In its first game, the team defeated Lambda Chi Alpha 14-11, despite being down a player.
Alpha Sigma Phi went on to beat Pi Kappa Alpha 15-11 later that afternoon to remain unbeaten since the sport started two years ago.
Joao Pelosi, freshman player for Alpha Sigma Phi, said it was a difficult day because the regular goalkeeper wasn’t there, leaving him to fill the position.
“On top of that, since we were a man down, everybody had to put a lot of effort in the game,” he said. “In the end, all of us were exhausted, but I’m glad we managed to pull a win.”
Alpha Sigma Phi won the initial race to the ball and scored within the first minute of the game, and the pace never slowed down. Lambda Chi held its own and responded with a goal on its first possession and kept the game close. Both teams battled back and forth until Alpha Sigma Phi found a commanding 8-3 lead at the conclusion of the first half.
Lambda Chi came out refreshed in the second half and returned most of Alpha Sigma Phi’s goals, decreasing the deficit. However, its defense was unable to stop Alpha Sigma Phi’s four-man power team.
“I was really proud of all of us,” Pelosi said. “I believe the only reason why we won was because none of us gave up at any point, and we fought through until the very end.”
A hit with both Alpha Sigma Phi and Lambda Chi, inner tube water polo is gaining popularity with Murray State students, but it still has a long way to go before it is as competitive as other intramural sports.
“Water polo here is not very competitive due to the fact that not many people are interested in it,” Pelosi said. “Some residential colleges and fraternities and sororities don’t even get one team in the competition. Having more teams to play against would definitely raise the level of competitiveness.”
With only 11 men’s teams and seven women’s teams, inner tube water polo only gained one more team than it had in its inaugural spring 2013 season, but that isn’t for lack of uniqueness.
“The main reason why I decided to play water polo was because I love swimming, staying in the water, that kind of stuff,” Pelosi said. “It’s such a different sport from all the others, and the fact that it’s played in water just makes it even more fun. Also, the fact that people really have a good time playing, not only with their teammates, but as well as with the other teams and even the refs, makes it a really fun sport.”
Story by Mallory Tucker, Staff writer