WASHINGTON, Pa. --  The Washington & Jefferson College men's water polo team opened the 2021 season with a pair of wins Saturday at the annual Washington & Jefferson College Invitational. 

W&J 19, Penn State Behrend 8 

The Presidents earned a 19-8 victory over fellow conference foe Penn State Behrend. Andrew Edwards (Columbus, Ohio/St. Charles Prep) tallied a team-high four goals in the wire-to-wire victory.

W&J opened strong as they built a 6-0 lead after the first quarter before carrying an 11-6 advantage into halftime. The Presidents then outscored the Lions by a 5-1 edge in the third to put the match away. W&J then tacked on three more goals in the fourth to punctuate the victory. 

Will Kitsch (Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin) and Cam Spicer (Lansing, Mich./East Lansing) posted three goals each to add to a balanced offensive attack. 

Caine Dusza (Souderton, Pa./Souderton) made seven saves to earn the victory in net. 

W&J 12, Michigan State Club (Team White) 7

The Presidents started slower in game two but eventually built a 3-1 lead after the first quarter. W&J tacked on four of the five second quarter goals to extend its lead to 7-2 at halftime. The Michigan State Club team used five of seven goals in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 9-7. However, the Red and Black tallied all three goals in the fourth to finish off the victory. 

Kitsch led the Presidents with four goals and three steals in game two. Mitchell Rubio (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) accounted for three goals in the victory. Dusza performed well again in the cage, as he recorded 10 saves. 

Michigan State Club (Team Green) 13, W&J 12 (Overtime) 

Neither team led by more than three goals in the last match of the day for W&J. A low scoring first quarter saw W&J carry a 2-1 lead. The Presidents then took a 5-4 edge into halftime. W&J appeared poised for a third victory, as they used a 5-3 run in the third to take a three-goal advantage (10-7) heading to the fourth. However, Michigan State Green tallied five of the seven goals in the fourth to force a sudden death overtime session. Team Green used its momentum to tally the goal and victory. 

Andrew Edwards registered his second hat trick of the day with three goals in the finale of the weekend. Kitsch and Spicer added two goals each. Dusza made 13 saves in net. 


W&J returns to competition with four matches at Penn State Behrend on Sept. 11-12. The Presidents open against Austin College at 11 a.m. on Saturday.