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Johns Hopkins Finishes Third at Southern Division Championship
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The Johns Hopkins men's water polo team defeated George Washington and 20th-ranked Bucknell en route to a third-place finish at the 2009 CWPA Southern Championships. The Blue Jays are now 16-14 overall and have clinched their fourth straight trip to the CWPA Eastern Championships.
Hopkins opened the championship with a 12-5 win over divisional rival George Washington, as the Blue Jays held the Colonials to five or fewer goals for the third consecutive meeting. GW opened the scoring with 1:57 to play, but a pair of Ross Schofield (Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich) goals just 19 seconds a part, gave Hopkins 2-1 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Blue Jays didn't look back, as Schofield's first goal kicked off a six-goal run, pushing their lead to 6-1 at the half. The Colonials rallied in the third quarter, outscoring Hopkins 4-1, to make it a 7-5 game heading into the final stanza. Hopkins responded in the fourth, shutting out GW, 5-0 to take the 12-5 win. Senior Kyle Gertridge (Gunn Prep, Calif. /Paolo Alto) and freshman Kielan Crow (Portola Valley, Calif./Lick-Wilmerding) combined to score eight goals to lead the Blue Jays.
JHU then faced off against 12th-ranked Navy in the semifinals. With the match tied at 3-3 after one quarter, Navy surged ahead in the second to take a 6-4 lead at the half. The Midshipmen extended their lead to five at 10-5 after three, before the Blue Jays rallied in the fourth. Hopkins cut the lead to two, midway through the final quarter, but Navy would score the next two goals to hold for the 12-9 win. Junior John Barrett (Clarendon Hills, Ill./Fenwick) notched a hat trick to lead the Blue Jays, while Gertridge and freshman Eli Levitt (Miami, Fla./Ransom Everglades) each had a pair of assists.
Hopkins then faced off against host Bucknell in the third-place match on Sunday. It was a physical match that saw a total of 28 ejections, six five-meter shots and six players foul out. Hopkins got on the board first, taking a 1-0 lead on an Alex Whittam (Hillsborough, Calif./Sacred Heart Prep) goal. But the Bison responded with three straight to take a 3-1 lead after the first. The Blue Jays came back in the second quarter with three straight of their own, including a pair from Crow, to take a 4-3 lead. Bucknell got a goal with two minutes to play to make it a 4-4 game at the half.
After a scoreless third quarter, the teams headed into the fourth quarter still tied at 4. Bucknell took a 5-4 lead with a man-up goal less than two minutes in, but it was answered by a strike from Antonio Aguilera (Coral Gables, Fla./Gulliver Prep). Just 22 seconds later, the Bison retook the lead. Gertridge responded with a pair of goals, including a five-meter goal, to give Hopkins a 7-6 lead. That lead lasted just 39 seconds as Bucknell knotted the score at 7-7 with 1:29 to play on anther man-up goal. Neither team was able to score before the end of regulation, forcing overtime. Paul Reamey scored with six seconds remaining in the first overtime period to give Bucknell an 8-7 lead. In the second overtime period, Gertridge scored on a five-meter shot one minute into the second overtime to knot the score at 8-8. Schofield then scored on a fast break with 1:27 left to give Hopkins a 9-8 lead. Junior Jeremy Selbst (Old Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich) then came up a save on a Bucknell shot with 53 seconds remaining and Hopkins was able to run out the clock to take the win.
Hopkins is the third seed from the South for next weekend's Eastern Championship hosted by MIT. JHU will square off against Fordham, the second seed from the North, in the first round at 1:00 pm on Friday, November 20.
