WASHINGTON, D.C. -- 13th-year head coach Scott Reed recently announced that the George Washington University men's water polo team will host four matches against Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Southern Division rivals as part of a 20-game regular-season slate.

The Colonials will welcome Bucknell University and CWPA Eastern champion Princeton University in a doubleheader on September 22, while the United States Naval Academy (October 10) and Johns Hopkins University (October 17) will also visit the Charles E. Smith Center Pool.

GW will kick off its 2012 campaign as it has in 12 of the previous 13 seasons - at the Navy Open (September 1-2), one of four in-season tournaments on tap. The following week, the Colonials will head to the Princeton Invitational (September 8-9), where they will face 2011 national runner-up the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as CWPA Northern Division programs the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Brown University and Fordham University.

The Colonials will also take part in the CWPA North/South Tournament at Harvard University (September 15-16) and the Claremont Convergence in Claremont, Calif. (October 5-6).

In addition, GW will visit league rivals Johns Hopkins (September 19), Bucknell (October 14), Princeton (October 20) and Navy (October 27). While in Princeton, N.J., the Colonials will also square off with CWPA Division opponent Iona College (October 20).

The 2012 CWPA Southern Division Championship is slated for November 2-4 at Bucknell, while the Eastern Championship will take place November 16-18 at Princeton.

"This is one of the toughest early-season schedules we have had in a long time," said Reed. "The Princeton Invite will be one of the premier tournaments of the year, followed by a tough North/South Championship that will have the top CWPA teams in the conference. We will have to be at our best early on."

The Colonials return 14 letterwinners from the 2011 squad that finished 13-17 overall and placed fifth at the Southern Division Championship.

Release courtesy George Washington University Athletic Communications