The weekend began well for the men’s water polo team, as they were able to pick up a 14-12 win on the road over George Washington Sept. 26. Jeff Hagen ’18 led the offensive attack, with a career-high of five goals against the Colonials. Playing in what Hagen called a “shallow pool,” he netted two of his goals of the contest to send the game into overtime. Sean Daley ’17 had three goals contributing to the win, and his classmate, Nate Hunter ’17 had two of his own.

Following the win over George Washington, the Bison made the drive from Washington to Baltimore to put their six-game winning streak on the line against 17th-ranked Johns Hopkins. The Bison fought hard in a close game but came up short. There was not much separation throughout the contest, as the score was within two goals for the entire four quarters of play. Utility player Ratmir Babic ’17 tallied four assists against Johns Hopkins, despite the Orange and Blue’s 13-12 loss.

Babic continued to share the ball well, as he posted a team-high by racking up three more assists, giving him seven on the day. Stefan Aleksic ’16 did all that he could with his five goals. Tommy Stupp ’18 also had a multi-goal game, sneaking two shots by the Johns Hopkins goalkeepers. Hagen added to his goal total of the day by scoring three times in this game. Charlie Niehaus ’18 started in goal for the Bison in both games, recording 24 saves on the day, including a career-high 13 against George Washington.

“We have the intensity of a game in each practice, which is really tiring but definitely has contributed to our success,” Hagen said.

As the season progresses, the Bison have one thing on their mind according to Hagen.

“We haven’t won an Eastern Championship since 1980. That is the team’s and my only goal,” Hagen said.

The 15th-ranked Bison have had a great deal of success so far this season. One of the Orange and Blue’s most dominant programs will enjoy a weekend off before picking things back up Oct. 10-11 with four games at Kinney Natatorium against George Washington, Princeton, Johns Hopkins, and Navy.