Last year in the East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships, the No. 9 seed Johns Hopkins water polo team shocked the competition with a fifth place finish. For this year's team, a win wouldn't be so shocking.
The team is going into the ECAC, a tournament for the top eight teams on the East Coast, seeded as the eighth team. This is a change in format from last year, when the conference admitted the top ten teams.
"Last year we came in and completely upset the other teams in order to get fifth place, which was very unexpected," said Head Coach Ted Bresnahan. "However, this year, because we're nationally ranked, teams will be ready for us, making it harder to pull an unexpected win."
Finishing the ECAC last year in fifth place, Hopkins placed higher than any other Division III team. This year, with other teams expecting Hopkins to be a threat, the team worked even harder in order to once more surprise their opponents.
The Jays are gearing up for Princeton, the No. 1 team on the East Coast, to be their toughest challenge. Princeton is currently ranked ninth nationally and made it to the NCAA Final Four last year.
"Princeton is the best team on the East Coast," said senior co-captain Win Bates. "But we have a very good chance to beat them if we really work to improve ourselves and make no mistakes."
Senior co-captain Jim Singleton also feels that the Blue Jays have a good chance against Princeton.
"This is the best team that we've ever had," said Singleton. "Every year we try to challenge harder teams throughout the season. Now we're trying to beat Princeton."
As the tournament's last seed, Hopkins is looking at the daunting task of facing the Tigers in their first match. Winning or losing against Princeton will determine the rest of the conference for the team.
If the team wins against Princeton, they play next against the winner of the Harvard and Bucknell game. If Hopkins loses against Princeton, they play against the loser of the Harvard and Bucknell game.
Depending on how the team performs from there, they'll either play against MIT, St. Francis College, U.S.. Naval Academy or Brown University. Last year, at the ECAC, Hopkins defeated MIT but lost to St. Francis and Navy.
But the Blue Jays are optimistic, and with good reason. The boost in the team's performance is due to the team stepping up and making a real effort to improve.
"For the past couple of years, the team acted more like a club, with a couple of players really carrying the team." Bates said. "A lot of guys have committed themselves to working out on their own, outside of practice. They've really committed to the team."
Players also feel that the mentality of the team has changed.
"We used to have a Division III mentality, and we made excuses to not perform to our best." Singleton said.
With an excellent pre-season behind them, the team has been conditioning since their last tournament at Bucknell. In preparation for the ECAC, the team has been working on their counter attack, such as improving goals on fast breaks.
"We've been working hard, running offensive and defensive schemes. We're just trying to prepare physically now," said Bresnahan.
In addition to the improved conditioning, another change from last year that may help in the ECAC is the addition of Assistant Coach Rey Rivera. Before coming to coach at Johns Hopkins, Rivera played on the national team as well as served on a professional team over in Spain.
"He's helped a lot," said Singleton. "He's made a big difference in our strategies and our conditioning."
Most of all, the biggest factor going into the ECAC is the attitude of the players.
"We're going in the right direction. A lot of guys really want to win," said Bates.
Singleton added, "All of the team has stepped up. Everyone from the top to the bottom."
The team's ultimate goal is to make it to the NCAA Final Four Championship. The road to the NCAA Final Four begins with placing within the Southern Division. The Southern Division includes schools such as Princeton, Bucknell, Navy, Salem International, Slippery Rock and Gannon.
"For the Southern Division of water polo, the top four teams go onto the Eastern Championship," said Bresnahan. "From there the top team gets the automatic bid for the NCAA Final Four."
Following the ECAC tournament, the Blue Jays will return home to play against George Washington University on Wednesday, Sept. 28.
