George Washington University Athletics
No. 19 (t) Water Polo Heads to Battle at the MAWPC Championship
11/17/2022 10:22:00 AM | Water Polo
Colonials enter as the #2 seed with a first-round bye
WASHINGTON - No. 19 (t) GW water polo (21-6, 14-2) is heading back to the Bronx this weekend with an automatic-bid to the NCAA tournament on the line at the MAWPC Championship Tournament. Hosted by Fordham, the tournament begins on Friday morning and ends with the championship game on Sunday afternoon.
GW secured a first-round bye and the second seed after going an impressive 14-2 in conference play and finishing with the MAWPC's second-highest win percentage. The only two conference losses for the Colonials came at the hands of Fordham, who finished the season 16-0 in the MAWPC and is the top-seeded team entering the weekend. The Buff and Blue's first match is at 5:40 p.m. on Friday evening, against the winner of the first round Friday morning matchup between Mount St. Mary's and Johns Hopkins.
Tremendous Theodoros:Â
Graduate transfer Theodoros Pateros is just one goal shy of tying Brent Stoll (1995) for the second-most goals scored in a single season in GW men's water polo history. Pateros has paced the Colonials' offense this season and was the first to triple-digit points, now with 125 on the year. Pateros, who will be getting his first look at MAWPC postseason action, has a chance to set GW's new single-season goal record, needing 15 more goals to break Glauco Souza's (1992) record of 124 goals.
The Schroeder Special:Â
Order up. Nick Schroeder has served up a team-high 51 assists this season. The utility, from Orinda, Calif., has well over 100 assists and 200 points in his career in the Buff and Blue. Schroeder, who quickly emerged in his first year, became a starter in 2018 and helped GW to its first MAWPC title. Schroeder has been a part of multiple GW runs at the MAWPC Championship, and he will be leaned on this weekend as one of the more experienced players on the roster.Â
Barry is King:
In his sixth season at the helm of GW water polo, Barry King has improved upon his already impressive record as a head coach. In the Colonials' dominance this season, King's overall record has risen to 96-52, and his MAWPC record has risen to 47-19. King led GW to its first conference championship and NCAA Tournament berth in 2017, and he earned GW's first victory in the national tournament the year after.
Potential Schedule:
The Colonials are guaranteed to play three games this weekend, win or lose. A win on Friday will propel the Colonials into the semifinals at 8 p.m. on Saturday, while a Friday night loss would have GW playing at 3:40 p.m. on Saturday. GW will play once more on Sunday between 10:30 a.m. and 3 p.m., depending on the results of Friday and Saturday.Â
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