NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College men's water polo team split its matches against No. 10 Johns Hopkins and Penn State Behrend on the opening day of the CWPA Division III Eastern Championships.
 
The Camels, who were playing their first home games in two years, first fell to the nationally-ranked Blue Jays, 19-13, before ending the day on a high note with a 16-11 victory over the Nittany Lions.
 
Johns Hopkins 19, Connecticut College 13
 
Johns Hopkins was bolstered by a strong first quarter in which the squad outscored the Camels, 6-1, through the first quarter of play. But after the Blue Jays extended their lead to 8-1, the hosts came roaring back and ended up outscoring their opponent by a 4-2 margin in the second frame by getting markers from four different players.
 
However, the early deficit was too much to overcome. The Camels slashed the margin down to four at 11-7 on a marker by senior Lucas Verrilli (Evanston, Ill.) before eventually falling by a six-goal decision.
 
Junior Christian Jacobsen (North Palm Beach, Fla.) paced the offense with five goals and was also along four players to play between the posts, making three saves in the second quarter. Sophomore Alex Turnquest (Nassau, Bahamas) also made three stops as a goalie during the first quarter, and senior Mike Gertsik (Brooklyn, N.Y.) netted a hat trick.
 
Connecticut College 16, Penn State Behrend 11
 
After the teams played each other relatively evenly during the first two quarters, Connecticut College got its first win of the season over Penn State Behrend by outscoring the Nittany Lions by a 4-1 margin in the third. Jacobsen propelled the Camels with three of his four goals in the third, and seniors Verrilli and Gertisk added insurance in the fourth.
 
Jacobsen, Gertsik, and Verrilli all scored four goals apiece in the victory, while a plethora of goalies combined to make nine saves on the defensive end.
 
Connecticut College (1-8) will wrap up competing at the CWPA Division III Championships tomorrow morning when it hosts Augustana College at 9 a.m.