Nov. 20, 2010

LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Navy water polo team jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back as it defeated top-seeded Princeton, 8-5, in the CWPA Eastern Championship semifinal game on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Navy advanced to its sixth consecutive CWPA Eastern Championship final where it will meet St. Francis at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday. Navy will be aiming for its 10th Eastern title.

The Midshipmen (25-6) advanced to the title game thanks in large part to junior Kyle Wertz who scored three goals in Saturday's win.

Wertz set the tone early as he recorded his first goal just 22 seconds into the game. Luke Baldwin scored less than one minute later and Stevie Ray added two more goals in the frame.

With the score still 4-0 at the start of the third quarter, Princeton sliced into the Navy lead with a pair of goals. But Wertz put a halt to the Princeton rally when he found the back of the net with less than a minute remaining in the quarter to make it 5-2.

The Mids extended the lead to 7-2 in the fourth as Conor Handley scored and Wertz added his third tally of the day.

The Tigers were able to strike twice more before the two teams traded goals in final minute of the game to make the score 8-5.

Anthony Gutierrez made nine saves in goal for the Midshipmen.

"Our guys are playing really hard and smart right now," said Navy head coach Mike Schofield. "I'm really proud of our team and hope we can finish the job tomorrow."

Navy is the first team since the Brown Bears in 1981-87 to reach six or more consecutive Eastern title games, as the Mids will appear in their sixth match (2005-10) tomorrow. Navy is now 64-22 in 29 Eastern tournament appearances and is guaranteed to record its 23rd top-three finish in the tournament.

Sunday's game will mark the fourth Eastern Championship-game meeting between Navy and St. Francis. The Mids defeated St. Francis in 2000 and '07.