Oct. 7, 2008
BALTIMORE, Md. & WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The 17th-ranked Navy water polo team scored 33 goals in two games en route to a pair of offensive-minded victories on Tuesday night. The Mids topped Johns Hopkins, 15-12, before heading down the Beltway to defeat George Washington, 18-12, in the nightcap. The wins improve Navy's record to 12-7 overall and 5-1 in the CWPA Southern Division.
In the first game, a 15-12 victory over Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, the Mids overcame a slow start to earn the victory. Navy trailed 6-3 after the first quarter and 9-6 at halftime. The Blue Jays went up 10-6 early in the third quarter, before Brett Rajchel made a key save on a penalty shot to jump-start the Mids to a five-goal run over the remainder of the third quarter. Navy led 11-10 after three quarters before pulling away in the fourth quarter.
"We got off to a very slow start with a lot of turnovers and not much defense in the first half," said Navy head coach Mike Schofield. "We played pretty well in the second half. Brett Rajchel's save really changed the momentum and got us headed in the right direction."
Senior Michael Mulvey and freshman Kyle Wertz each scored five goals, and Chuck Baker netted four goals. Johnny Meiners netted Navy's final goal to put the game out of reach. Brett Rajchel stopped 11 shots in goal.
In the second game against George Washington, Navy led 4-3 after one quarter and was tied 8-8 at halftime. However, the Mids outscored the Colonials, 7-4, in the third quarter and 3-0 in the final stanza for the 18-12 victory. The Colonials led 9-8 early in the third quarter, but Navy outscored GWU, 10-3, for the remainder of the game.
"We decided in the second half that defense didn't have to be optional and we decided to finally play some," said Schofield. "We spent the first half battling not only George Washington, but ourselves. In the second half, we just decided to play George Washington and it made a big difference."
Baker and Wertz had five goals each, while Andrew Neuwirth, Kevin Bell and Johnny Meiners each had a pair. Rajchel stopped 10 shots in goal.
"Baker had a fantastic day today and played really well," said Schofield. "He was a man among boys and really had a strong performance in both games."
Navy will now be off until Oct. 19, when it travels to Lewisburg, Pa., to battle Gannon and Bucknell.
# GO NAVY #
