PRINCETON, N.J. — The Division III No. 6-ranked Johns Hopkins University water polo team dropped decisions to St. Francis College Brooklyn, 12-6, and No. 12/host Princeton University, 20-12, on the second day of the Princeton Invitational.
Versus St. Francis, Hopkins grabbed a 2-1 lead with back-to-back goals by seniors Jake Pearson and Jayden Kunwar midway through the first. St. Francis answered with a six-on-five goal at the 1:13-mark to tie the game at two.
The second quarter was also a low-scoring affair as the teams combined for two scores. Dominick Hevesi struck first in the quarter, putting the Terriers up 3-2 at 4:47. Sophomore Paul Gensbigler answered with just 51 seconds remaining to send the teams into the half tied at three.
St. Francis exploded for six goals in the third quarter, to just one for Hopkins, to push out to a 9-4 lead.
The Terriers continued their offensive burst early in the fourth quarter, scoring three straight to extend their lead to 12-4 midway through the quarter. Junior Kamran Eslami and sophomore Seth Burke ended the run with back-to-back goals just 67 second apart late in the period, to cut the deficit to six. That’s as close as Hopkins could get, however, as the Terriers escaped with a 12-6 victory.
In the late game against the host Tigers, the teams traded goals over the opening eight minutes and Princeton led 4-3 at the end of one quarter.
The Tigers pushed their lead to two with a Joan Coloma goal just 40 seconds in. The Blue Jays answered with goals from Kunwar and senior Emerson Sullivan to knot the score at five with 5:58 to play in the second quarter. Princeton got goals from Yurian Quinones and Mitchell Cooper, sandwiched around a goal from Sullivan, to take a 7-6 lead with just 34 ticks on the clock. Sullivan had the final say of the half by scoring a six-on-five goal with just three seconds left to make it a 7-7 game at the break.
Sullivan opened the third quarter scoring to give Hopkins its first lead, 8-7, just 34 seconds into the frame. Princeton answered, but a Kunwar goal at 4:46 put JHU up 9-8. The Tigers responded with six straight goals to take a 14-9 lead after three quarters of action.
Princeton picked up where it left off, scoring three to open the fourth quarter and push out to a 17-9 lead. The teams traded goals over the final five minutes as the Tigers grabbed the 20-12 win.
Overall, Hopkins falls to 14-31 all-time against St. Francis as the Terriers win their third straight in the series. JHU is now 5-53 all-time against Princeton.
Against St. Francis, freshman goalie Kyle Pearson made 16 saves in the loss, which is tied for the second most ever by a freshman in program history. In addition, he handed out a pair of assists and grabbed three steals. Kunwar finished with a career-best four steals to go with his first-quarter score. In addition to his goal, Burke tied his career-high with two blocks.
Kunwar also led the Blue Jays versus Princeton with five goals and six points and now ranks 23rd in school history with 174 career points. He is also 19th with 139 career goals. Sullivan chipped in four goals and three drawn ejections, while Jake Pearson added three points (one goal, two assists) and four steals. Freshman Connor Mechelke made a career-best 12 saves in the goal against the Tigers.
Information courtesy Princeton University Athletics Communications
