ANNAPOLIS, MD – Host Navy held on for a 15-14 win over Johns Hopkins Sunday afternoon in non-conference water polo action. The Blue Jays drop to 15-5 on the season while the Mids improve to 19-9.
Navy grabbed a 2-0 lead in the game's opening 67 seconds, but Hopkins responded with a five-meter goal from
Mason Hofmann at 6:35. Kiefer Black and Austin Kahn sandwiched extra man goals around an
Andrew Lee score and it was 4-2 Mids with 3:26 to play in the first.
Hofmann opened the second with back-to-back goals to tie the game just 1:16 into the quarter. Navy's Aiden Day put the home team back on top just 33 seconds later.
Phillip Long and
Owen Bartlett scored twice for Hopkins to give the Blue Jays a 6-5 with 3:34 to go in the half. The Mids answered with goals from Day and Luka Sekulic to grab a 7-6 lead. Hofmann buried his second penalty goal of the afternoon with just 10 ticks on the clock to make it a 7-7 game at the half.
The Blue Jays and Mids went back-and-forth over five-minute span to open the third and Navy led 10-9.
Luke Mendelsohn and
Alec Baker answered with back-to-back exclusion goals and Hopkins led 11-10 with 40 seconds to go in the quarter. Maddox Garrahy tied the game at 11 with a five-meter goal late in the third. That sparked a 3-0 Mids run that saw them go up 13-11 with 5:32 to play.
Lee halted Navy's run with an even strength goal just 12 seconds later. The teams would trade goals over the final three minutes and six seconds as the Mids held on for the 15-14 win.
Hofmann led the Blue Jays with four goals, six points and five steals. Mendelsohn finished with five points (3g, 2a), two drawn exclusions and two steals. Lee (3g) and Bartlett (1g, 2a) added three points each.
Kyle Pearson made 15 saves in the cage for the Blue Jays.
Hopkins returns to action on Saturday, November 8 in MPSF action at Wheaton.
