Nov. 9, 2007
ANNAPOLIS, MD - The Johns Hopkins water polo team finished as the runner-up at the 2007 Southern Championships last weekend. For the Blue Jays (15-13) it was their highest finish ever at the championships, besting third place finishes in 1999 and 2002. Hopkins defeated Penn State Behrend (15-4), Mercyhurst (13-9) and George Washington (6-5) to advance to the title game. Hopkins then fell 11-7 to host Navy in the championship.
Hopkins, the third seed, opened up with a 15-4 win over ninth-seeded Penn State Behrend. Senior Sean McCreery (Pleasant Hill, CA/ De La Salle) led the way for the Blue Jays with four goals and three steals. Junior Josh Kratz (Landsdale, PA/North Penn), sophomore M.G. Gonzalez (Calabassas, CA/Oaks Christian) and freshman Michael de Lyon (Newbury Park, CA/Newbury) scored two goals each for Hopkins. Junior Chris Hutchens (Granite Bay, CA/Bellarmine Prep) finished with eight saves, while senior Andrew McTammany (Hampstead, NH/Exeter) and freshman Jeremy Selbst (Old Greenwich, CT/Greenwich) had two each.
Hopkins then took on sixth-seeded Mercyhurst. The Blue Jays jumped out to a 6-3 lead at the half, but the Lakers cut it to just 8-6 heading into the final quarter. Hopkins pushed its lead to three, opening the final stanza with a goal. But Mercyhurst answered with a pair of goals to make it 9-8 with 5:16 to play. The Blue Jays outscored the Lakers 4-1 in the final three minutes of the game to take the win. Sophomore Kyle Gertridge (Gunn Prep/Paolo Alto, CA) was the leading scorer for Hopkins with four goals, while McCreery had three.
As the winner of bracket C, Hopkins took on George Washington, the winner of bracket B. The Blue Jays defeated the Colonials for the third time this season, winning a close one 6-5. Hopkins took an early 2-0 lead, but George Washington outscored Hopkins 4-1 to close out the first quarter with a 4-3 lead. The Blue Jays rallied in the second with two goals from junior Peter Davis (Riverside, CT/Greenwich) to retake the lead at 5-4. The Colonials tied it up at 5-5 midway through the third but a goal by McCreery gave the Blue Jays back the lead for good. Davis led the Hopkins offense with three goals, while McCreery had a pair of goals and assists.
Hopkins then face off against the home team for the title. The Blue Jays trailed 5-2 at the half, but rallied in the third with three goals in a span of just two minutes to tie the match at 5-5. The Midshipmen responded with a three-goal run of their own to retake the lead. Navy then outscored Hopkins 3-2 in the final to take the win. McCreery had three goals to lead Hopkins, with junior Chris Rochester (Hillsboro, CA/ Sacred Heart Prep) scoring a pair.
The Blue Jays earned the #3 seed in next weekend's Eastern Championships, hosted by Harvard. Hopkins will take on the host, sixth-seeded Harvard at 3:30 on Friday, November 16. Hopkins has defeated Harvard twice this season and will look to make it a third. The winner will face the winner of the #2 St. Francis-#7 Bucknell match at 8:00 pm on Saturday. The Blue Jays had their best finish ever at the Eastern Championships last season, finishing sixth.
