PRINCETON, N.J. – The #19 Navy water polo team (3-4, 1-0 MAWPC) posted a pair of victories to sweep the first day of competition at the annual Princeton Invitational at DeNunzio Pool in Princeton, N.J. The Midshipmen opened the day with a 13-12 victory over Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference foe Wagner (2-3, 0-1) before cruising to a 22-9 win over LIU (0-4) in the nightcap.
 
"We played well today and were able to come away with a couple of wins," head coach Luis Nicolao said. "Wagner played us hard, which we knew they were going to do. Going up against a conference opponent is always hard because you know each other so well because you go up against one another multiple times a year. Our team captain Holden came up big in that game scoring a couple of goals including the game winner. In the second game, we started off a little slow, but we were able to pick it up and play our game. We got a lot of players in the game and a lot of our young players – Mulvey, Berry, and Ryan [Mondzelewski] – getting their first hat tricks of their careers. It was a good day for us today and I am looking forward to another good day tomorrow."
 
Fifteen different Midshipmen found the back of the net on the day. Freshmen Aiden Berry, Ryan Mondzelewski, and James Mulvey recorded their first collegiate hat tricks against LIU. Berry finished the day with five total points on four goals and an assist, while Mondzelewski tallied three goals. Mulvey tied for the team lead with six total points, netting five goals with an assist.
 
Aiden Day and Orion Erwin also finished the day with six points with the duo each notching a pair of goals and four assists. Connor Cashman finished the day with five points on four goals and an assist, while Kiefer Black added five points on a pair of goals and three helpers.
 
With three assists on the day, Black passed Tom Popp ('89) for first-place all time in career assists (141).
 
Jack Reif and Holden Seybold each finished the day with three goals apiece, while Jack Mason posted a pair of goals and an assist for three points. Quinn Bartlett, Maddox Garrahy, Luke Kirincich, Matt Mai-Prasarnsuk, and Billy Zech each added one goal each. Ramsay Letteau Stallings, Jack Rodoni, and Luka Sekulic chipped in two assists apiece with Rory Begin and Austin Kahn dishing out helpers.
 
At goal, Rodoni led the charge with eight saves on the day with Jack Hightower following with three and Ryan Much adding a pair.
 
Navy concludes play at the Princeton Invitational on Saturday with #16 Harvard (3-1) at 3:30 p.m.
 
Game 1 Recap: #19 Navy 13, Wagner 12
Navy led by as many as three goals against Wagner, holding on for a one-goal victory to earn its first Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference win of the season.
 
Seybold put the Mids on the scoreboard early, but the Seahawks countered with a goal. The Midshipmen regained the lead thanks to a Zech goal and extended the advantage as Garrahy found the back of the net. Wagner trimmed the margin to one, but Seybold pushed the Navy lead to 4-2. The designated visitors were able to sneak one final goal in as the quarter ended with Navy in front, 4-3.
 
Erwin and Black scored back-to-back goals to start the second quarter and put the Mids ahead, 6-3. The Seahawks countered by scoring three of the next four goals to go into halftime down 7-6. Black had the lone goal during the run for the Midshipmen.
 
Neither team was able to score early in the second half, but Wagner was able to push one across, knotting the game at 7-7. Navy responded with a 3-0 run to close out the period thanks to goals by Reif, Bartlett, and Day to regain a three-goal advantage, 10-7.
 
The Seahawks used a pair of goals to start the fourth quarter to close the Mids' lead to one. Berry converted a five-meter opportunity to push the Navy lead back to two. However, Wagner scored a pair of goals, including a penalty shot to lock the game at 11-11. The Midshipmen regained the lead thanks to a Reif goal, but the Seahawks matched the goal with 2:02 to play. Seybold, the senior team captain, worked his way into position and was able to dunk a ball into the back of the cage putting Navy in front by one, 13-12. The Midshipmen defense was able to hold over the final 89 seconds of regulation and come away with the victory.
 
Game 2 Recap: #19 Navy 22, LIU 9
In the night cap, Navy erupted for a season-high 22 goals to cruise to a victory over LIU.
 
Mulvey started the game with a goal, but the Sharks answered to lock the game at 1-1. The Midshipmen regained the lead as Berry found the back of the net. Following a pair of LIU goals, Cashman tied the game at three with his first score of the game.
 
In the second quarter, Navy took control of the game. The Mids opened the period with a 4-0 run with three goals by Mulvey and a score by Berry. For Mulvey, it was the rookie's first collegiate hat trick. LIU and Navy traded goals to end the first half with Reif, Erwin, and Day scoring for the Midshipmen to enter halftime up 10-6.
 
Navy outscored LIU, 5-1, in the third quarter. Berry opened up the scoring to complete his first collegiate hat trick, while Mai-Prasarnsuk added a goal. Cashman converted a five-meter opportunity to go up 13-6. Following a Shark goal, Cashman once again dented the net, while Reif slammed a goal home to push the advantage to 15-7.
 
LIU opened the fourth quarter with a goal, but Mason countered with his first score of the night. Following a successful five-meter by the Sharks, the Midshipmen closed out the game with six straight goals, including three scores by Mondzelewski and goals by Cashman, Kirincich, and Mason. For Mondzelewski, it marked his first collegiate hat trick, while it was the first collegiate goals for both Kirincich and Mason. The four goals by Cashman tied a career high, set earlier this season in a win against Occidental.