ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy water polo team (18-7, 9-1) used a strong second-half to post a 14-9 Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference (MAWPC) victory over Wagner (9-13, 2-5) on Saturday evening at Lejeune Hall in Annapolis. Tied 5-5 at halftime, the Midshipmen outscored the Seahawks, 9-4, in the second half to claim the victory.
"Tonight was a good start to a busy weekend," head coach
Luis Nicolao said. "The game was back and forth early, but the guys really came through in the second half. Any time you can get goalie play like we got tonight; you are going to win a decent number of games. We can't celebrate too long though as we have two more tomorrow."
Seven different Midshipmen combined to score the 14 goals in the game.
Quinn Bartlett led the team with a game-high eight points on a team-best four goals and a team-high four assists.
Luka Sekulic followed with three goals for a hat trick, while
Aiden Day and
Orion Erwin matched one another with three points on two goals and an assist apiece.
Kiefer Black added two points on a goal and an assist, while
Rory Begin notched two points on a pair of helpers.
Maddox Garrahy and
Holden Seybold each scored goals for points, while
Jack Mason and
James Mulvey added one point apiece with an assist each.
The Mids used a pair of goalies on the night as
Ryan Munch and
Jack Hightower combined to hold the Seahawk offense to single digits. Munch earned the start and worked three and a half quarters, registering 10 saves and a pair of steals, while allowing six goals. Hightower worked the final three-plus minutes of action with a stop to help secure the victory.
In the first quarter, the two teams played even. Wagner started the scoring with a goal, but Navy countered with scores by Sekulic and Erwin. The Seahawks tied the game at two, but Day converted a five-meter attempt to regain the lead. Following a Wagner score, Garrahy skipped the ball through several defenders to put the Mids in front, 4-3. The Seahawks were able to score the equalizer before the end of the period.
The second quarter was a low scoring period with each team finding the back of the net just once. Bartlett opened the scoring to put Navy in front 5-4, but Wagner was able to sneak one by the goalie to go into halftime locked at 5-5.
The Midshipmen used a 5-0 run to start the third quarter to take charge of the game. Bartlett completed his hat trick with back-to-back goals to start the frame. Day, Sekulic, and Erwin followed with their second goals of the game. With 20 second remaining in the period, the Seahawks ended the run with a score to head to the final quarter of play with the Mids in front, 10-6.
In the fourth quarter, the Midshipmen were able to extend their lead to as many as eight before ultimately claiming the five-goal victory. Bartlett scored his team-high fourth goal of the game to push the advantage to 11-6. Sekulic followed with a goal to give the junior a hat trick. Black converted a five-meter attempt and Seybold pushed the margin to eight, 14-6. Wagner closed out the game with a 3-0 run to provide the final margin, 14-9.
Navy concludes the weekend with a pair of contests against #5 Fordham (15-3, 6-0) on Sunday morning at 11:00 a.m. and Johns Hopkins (15-4) on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. All three games will be played in Lejeune Hall and broadcast on
Navy Athletics YouTube.
