Harvard Water Polo Takes Two At CWPA Northerns

Harvard men’s water polo wrapped up its season yesterday, placing fifth in this weekend’s CWPA Northern Championships at MIT. The Crimson, seeded fifth entering the tournament, won two out of its three games.

Harvard (12-16, 2-5 CWPA) fell in its opening game to Fordham (16-14, 4-3), 8-5, then bounced back to crush Connecticut College (4-13, 0-7) in its next match, 18-5. This mixed bag of results put the Crimson in position to capture a top-five finish in the tournament, a task it succeeded in as a result of its 7-6 victory over Iona (6-18, 2-5) yesterday.

“I was really proud of how the team played this weekend,” co-captain Bret Voith said.

HARVARD 7, IONA 6

Harvard jumped out to a 6-1 first half lead against Iona and then held on to clinch a 7-6 victory and fifth place in the tournament.

Senior Jeff Lee helped the Crimson offense, scoring twice in his last game for the team.

Defense also proved key in the contest against Iona, with junior goalie Alexandre Popp making 11 saves.

“[Yesterday]’s game was a great team effort,” Voith said. “During the third quarter, Iona wore down our lead, but we were able to hold them off. Our defense was solid today and allowed us to pull off the victory.”

Junior Kevin DiSilvestro also scored twice, helping propel Harvard to victory.

His goal in the third period protected the team’s advantage and helped to make up for a lack of Crimson scores in the fourth period. Popp contributed to Harvard’s offense as well, leading the squad with three assists on the day.

HARVARD 18, CONNECTICUT COLLEGE 5

In the team’s second game of the tournament, Voith had a standout performance in the water. He scored five of his nine goals of the weekend against Connecticut College in the Crimson’s rout.

Senior Alex Thompson led Harvard defensively, tallying six steals.

“Alex was great for us defensively,” Voith said. “He really allowed the rest of us to excel by clogging up the middle and shutting down the opposition’s post players. When you do that it makes everything else easier defensively. He did a great job for us and was key in our success.”

Junior co-captain Luka Babic also helped the Crimson to pour it on against the Camels, scoring four times. Including Voith and Babic, five of Harvard’s players scored multiple goals in the contest.

Assist duty was spread evenly among the team as four players chipped in with two apiece.

FORDHAM 8, HARVARD 5

In the Crimson’s first match of the weekend, the team fell to Fordham in a close decision.

“The loss against Fordham was disappointing,” Voith said. “But I think it speaks a lot to the character of everyone on our team to be able to bounce back from that first close loss and win the next two games. We ended our season on a strong note.”

First-year coach Ted Minnis echoed this sentiment when reflecting on Harvard’s play.

“I was really happy with the way we played this weekend,” Minnis said. “I was obviously disappointed with the outcome of the Fordham game. I thought we played better than them in every phase of the game.”

Voith led Crimson in all offensive categories against the Gaels with three goals and three assists. Thompson added another goal and led the team with three steals in the game.

Popp made seven saves for Harvard on the day, but it was not enough to keep Fordham from the victory.

But the weekend’s wins point to a successful end to the season and great potential for the Crimson’s future.

“I’m pretty happy with the outcome of our season,” Minnis said. “We had a very successful California trip. The guys worked hard and played hard for four quarters every game. I wish we could have advanced, but I’m really satisfied with the group of guys this year. The seniors will be proud of where the program is going.”