No. 18 United States Naval Academy Scourges Biola University, 17-9, & Division III No. 7 Occidental College, 18-8, to Conclude Navy Open
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The No. 18-ranked United States Naval Academy water polo team capped off the 2024 Navy Open with victories over Biola University, 17-9, and Division III No. 7 Occidental College, 18-8, at Lejeune Hall to remain unbeaten through the first weekend of the season.
“It was a good weekend for us,” said head coach Luis Nicolao. “We were able to score a lot of goals, play some solid defense, get a lot of guys into the pool, and come away with some quality wins. I am proud of the effort the team showed this weekend, but it is a long season and we need to continue to improve if we want to accomplish our goals this year.”
The Mids offense shined over the weekend, scoring 89 total goals in the five contests (17.8 goals/game). Sixteen (16) different Midshipmen found the back of the net with Kiefer Black and Luka Sekulic leading the charge with 16 and 11 goals, respectively.
Black paced the team with seven goals on Sunday, while Sekulic chipped in six scores on the day. Rory Begin, Michael Heller and Henry Williams each notched four goals with Quinn Bartlett chipping in three. Holden Seybold and Billy Zech slipped two goals apiece past the keeper with Connor Cashman, Jack Clark and Maddox Garrahy rounding out the scoring with one goal each.
Defensively, the Midshipmen defense held all five opponents to single-digit goals, allowing just 41 total goals in five games (8.2 goals/game).
Navy used a trio of goalkeepers on the day. Freshman Jack Rodoni worked a complete game in the cage against Biola, while fellow freshman Ryan Munch earned the start and tallied three quarters at goal against Occidental. Francis Hendrickson ended the game against Oxy, subbing in for the final quarter of action.
Navy opened the second day of competition with a 17-9 victory over Biola.
The Midshipmen jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead thanks to goals by Black, Begin, and Bartlett. Following an Eagle goal, Seybold sent the game into the second period with a 4-1 advantage. Sekulic notched back-to-back scores to push the advantage to 6-1. Biola chipped into Navy’s lead, but the Mids scored three of the final four goals of the frame to enter halftime with a 9-3 advantage. Black, Seybold, and Bartlett each registered their second goals of the game during that stretch.
Biola opened the second half with a goal to trim the margin to five at 9-4, but back-to-back five-meter goals by Black and Sekulic pushed the Navy lead to seven. Williams scored his first goal of the game between a pair of Eagle goals to head to the final period of play in front 12-6. In the fourth, Biola once again started the quarter with a goal, but consecutive scores by Sekulic and Williams doubled up the visitors, 14-7. The two teams exchanged goals the remainder of the game with Williams, Begin, and Heller finding the back of the net for the Midshipmen in the 12-point victory.
The Midshipmen closed out the Navy Open with an 18-8 win over Occidental to improve to 5-0 on the young season.
Oxy struck first, but goals by Williams and Sekulic gave Navy the lead. The Tigers knotted the score at 2-2, but the Mids countered with a 12-0 run that spanned into the third quarter to take control of the game. Heller broke the tie and Black netted a pair of goals to give the Midshipmen a 5-2 lead after one quarter of play. Led by two goals by Begin, seven different Mids scored in an 8-0 second quarter for Navy.
Heller opened the second half with a goal to extend the advantage to 14-2. Occidental ended the Navy run with three straight goals, but the Mids responded with a 3-0 run of their own to regain a 12-point advantage, 17-5. Oxy finished the game, scoring three of the final four goals with Clark converting a five-meter attempt for the lone Navy goal down the stretch to provide the final margin of 18-8.
Release courtesy United States Naval Academy Athletics Communications
