THOUSAND OAKS, CA – Second-ranked Redlands jumped out to a 7-1 lead and didn't look back as the Bulldogs beat Johns Hopkins, 18-6, in the semifinals of the Division III Collegiate Water Polo National Championship.
 
Junior Cameron Burns opened the scoring just over two minutes into the quarter. Alec Abrahamian answered for Redlands and sparked that seven-goal run. Five different Bulldogs scored during the run that spanned nearly eight minutes and saw Redlands go up 7-1 with 4:52 to play in the half. Graduate student Emerson Sullivan ended the run with a goal at the 3:38-mark.
 
Drake Moody and Spencer Clinton responded with back-to-back goals to give Redlands a 9-2 lead at the half. The Bulldogs then pushed their lead to 12-2 with three straight to open the third. The teams then traded goals over the ensuing five minutes and Redlands led 14-5 with 6:17 still to play. The Bulldogs closed the game on a 4-1 run to grab the win and a spot in the national championship game.
 
Hopkins will now take on MIT in the third-place match on Sunday at 10:30 am PST. The Blue Jays and the Engineers have met in each of the two previous third-place matches, with each team winning once.
 
Inside the Box
Goals: Sullivan-1, Sadiq-1, Burns-1, Raley-1, Brooke-1, Housenbold-1
Assists: Burns-1, Eslami-1, Gensbigler-1, Mihalopoulos-1, Lo-1
Steals: Burns-3, Gensbigler-2, Pearson-1, Poisler-1, Raley-1, Lo-1
Saves: Pearson-10