The 2000 Johns Hopkins water polo team returns a strong nucleus from a squad that finished 17-11 last season, winning its fifth Division III Eastern Championship in the last six years. The Blue Jays lost five players to graduation, but return 11 veterans and four starters, including three players who scored 29 or more goals last season.

Gone are seniors Chris Cha and Tim Lovett, as well as seniors Joseph Domoto, Blake Hardin, and Hecheon Lee. In their place will be eight quality Hopkins recruits to help sophomore All-American Ryan Ford and two-time All-American senior Zaman Mirzadeh continue the success from last season.

Lovett, Cha, and Hardin joined Ford, the teams leading scorer with 59 goals, and senior tri-captain Mirzadeh, its second leading scorer with 57 goals, on the 1999 Eastern Division III Championship All-Tournament Team. Senior tri-captain Mark McCoy, who posted 29 goals on the year, sophomore Fred Kingston (13) and junior Elliot Hirsch (11) round out the list of double-digit scorers who will be back this season. Senior Adam Kinsey (6), a key contributing to last years team, was also named a tri-captain.

The schedule, which boasts several Division I opponents again this season, will present many challenges along the way. Hopkins, the first Division III school to ever qualify for the Eastern DI Championships, will host matches against CWPA Southern Division rivals George Washington and Princeton and play host to Division III competition in late September. JHU Water Polo will open its season at the Navy Invitational on September 2-3.