Crimson Stifles Camels with 'D'

Following a season high 17 goal effort last week, the Harvard women’s water polo team nearly matched that output en route to a 16-4 triumph over Connecticut College (1-6) last night in New London, Conn.

Utilizing a smothering press, the Crimson contained the Camel offense by never letting it get down the pool. Rather, the Harvard defense forced multiple Connecticut turnovers and then converted them into easy scores.

After one quarter the Crimson had built up a 4-1 lead.

The second quarter was even more impressive as Harvard went on a 4-0 run to extend its lead to a commanding 8-1 advantage.

The second half continued with more of the same as the Camels struggled to answer the Crimson’s overwhelming defense.

“It was just a question of keeping the pressure going,” head coach Erik Farrar said. “That was something that they really weren’t able to stop.”

Normally Harvard’s strength is its set offense that relies on patience and ball movement. Last night however, the Crimson showcased a speedy, efficient counter attack that proved to be too strong for Connecticut.

The offensive barrage was a demonstration of Harvard’s depth. The Crimson received goals from six different players with freshmen Kathryn Bilder leading the way with five tallies. Junior Melissa Mueller added four goals, while junior captain Lauren Snyder, freshman Roxanne Pinto and her classmate Kelley Peeler all had two. Junior Melissa MeCreery added one.

“We capitalized with a bunch of turnovers up top,” Snyder said. “We shut them down so they didn’t have that much to go to.”

Despite a dominant attack that made for a relatively quiet night for sophomore Nicola Perlman, the goalie was still able to reject seven shots while stripping the ball from the Camel’s four times.

“She did a great job,” Snyder said. “She had to block a lot of plain range saves, the goals they had were just complete breakdowns defensively.”

Harvard seems to be picking up momentum heading into the critical part of its season. It will travel to top seeded Hartwick College this weekend.

This match will be a good measure of the Crimson’s progress. When the two squads met back on February 24 the Hawks got the best of the Harvard, winning 13-3.

Most importantly however, the Crimson is focused on preparing for the New England Championships that begin on April 21.

“April is what you train for,” Farrar said. “This is when the games really matter. The team is definitely coming together and starting to play much more effectively.”

—Staff writer Julia R. Senior can be reached at jrsenior@fas.harvard.edu.