ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Navy coaches Mike Schofield and Mladen Stanicic recently announced their 2009 recruiting class, which features 13 players from five states. The freshmen reported for plebe summer and the Naval Academy’s Induction Day on July 1.

Following three straight CWPA Eastern titles and NCAA Tournament berths, Navy reached all corners of the country finding its Class of 2009. Four of the members are from the Annapolis area, showing that the region is starting to show its strength on the high school level.

“We're excited to welcome this class to our program. They have excellent potential and our coaches can't wait to begin working with all of them,” said Navy head coach Mike Schofield.

“Having four local players (three from the Navy Aquatic Club) in the group is very indicative of how our sport is developing in the Maryland, D.C. and Virginia areas.”

Navy returns several key players from last year’s team, but Schofield figures there are a few players in the class that will contribute immediately.

“We have a solid group of returning players coming back, but several of these guys have the capability of getting right into the mix as freshmen,” said Schofield.

2009 Navy Water Polo Freshmen
Keegan Condon (Fullerton, Calif./Troy)
Christopher Gallardo (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel)
Jackson Hummeldorf (Coronado, Calif./Coronado)
Anthony Gutierrez (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly)
Julius Cort Jones (Crofton, Md./South River)
Anthony Matacotta (Marietta, Ga./Wheeler)
Paul Pedrotty (Coronado, Calif./Coronado)
Sam Ross (Chicago, Ill./The Hill School)
Scott Sabbatini (Annapolis, Md./St. Mary’s)
Erich Schwamb (Orange, Calif./El Modena)
Tyler Thein (Baltimore, Md./Loyola Blakesfield)
Jesse Walker (Seattle, Wash./Seattle Academy)
John "Archie" Warren (Baltimore, Md. Calvert Hall College)

In addition, Navy has announced the 2009 fall schedule, which, once again, features some of the top teams in the country. Navy opens the season on Sept. 5-6, by hosting the Navy Open. The Mids will face three teams likely to be ranked in the nation’s top 20 in Stanford, California and Johns Hopkins. The next weekend, Navy will host perennial power UC San Diego in Annapolis on Sept. 12.

Navy will also compete in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament (Sept. 19-20) and in the SoCal Tournament (Oct. 10-11), which last year featured 14 of the top 16 teams in the country.

Navy will host rivals Air Force, Bucknell, Princeton and George Washington on Oct. 17-18, in the team's final home games of the season.

This year’s CWPA Southern Division Tournament will be held Nov. 6-8, in Lewisburg, Pa. at Bucknell University, while the Eastern Championships will be Nov. 20-22, in Cambridge, Mass. at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  The NCAA Championships will be in Princeton, N.J., on Dec. 5-6 at Princeton University.

Release courtesy Navy Athletic Communications