Women's Water Polo Continues West-Coast Play

In the second leg of its 10-game California road trip, the Harvard women’s water polo team split four games Wednesday and Thursday, returning the team’s record to .500.

HARVARD 14, CAL LUTHERAN 4

In the second faceoff between the two teams this week, the Crimson (11-11, 1-0 Ivy) was able to pull out the victory yet again.

The game swung in Harvard’s favor from the beginning, as the Crimson took an early 4-0 lead in the opening quarter of play. The offense continued to click, adding five goals in the second quarter while limiting the Regals (4-18) to only two goals up to that point in the game.

Nine Harvard players contributed to the double-digit win, a season high for the team. Five Crimson players tallied more than one goal in the match up.

“We really picked up our game after the loss against Whittier,” senior co-captain Shayna Price said. “We think that we have the ability to play great water polo and come from the east and try and get some upsets [going forward]. We think that we have the ability to show what east coast water polo has to offer to the west coast.”

CAL STATE NORTHBRIDGE 11, HARVARD 9

Tied at eight goals going into the final quarter of play, the Crimson could not muster up enough offense to match the Matadors (16-5) as the game was decided in the final eight minutes.

Despite four goals by sophomore attacker Yoshi Andersen, Cal State Northridge was able to score three goals in the fourth quarter and come out on top. This was the first game Andersen played on the team’s California road trip after being out the previous weekend with an injury.

Junior goalie Ariel Dukes was in goal for Harvard, saving six shots during the contest.

“I think we definitely grew as a team,” Andersen said. “I think we had the potential to beat Northridge but I think we kind of stepped in our own way and I think it was difficult to see that we could have beaten them. Nonetheless, it is important game for us because we are going to see top-ranked teams this weekend.”

HARVARD 11, POMONA-PITZER 7

After a slow start, the Crimson was able to take charge of the game en route to its second win of the road trip.

The Sagehens (13-8, 1-0 SCIAC) came out to a 3-1 lead midway through the first quarter, but Harvard answered with three straights goals while holding Pomona-Pitzer to only one score to go into halftime with the lead.

The third quarter saw the Crimson offense surge forward, scoring six goals to take a 10-6 lead going into the final eight minutes of play. Sophomore Charlotte Hendrix led the scoring effort with three goals, while sophomore Rachel Lobato, Price, and freshman Michelle Martinelli each added two.

Harvard’s defense held strong in the final quarter of the game, not allowing the Sagehens back into the game. Junior Victoria Frager led the defense with five steals, while Dukes had two.

“We knew that we could play better [than we did against Whittier],” Price said. “It’s really fun being out here in the sun and playing outside and seeing all our families out here during spring break. I think we let that get to us and it got in the way of what we’re really out here for which is to play water polo.”

WHITTIER 12, HARVARD 9

In a back-and-forth battle that saw multiple lead changes throughout the competition, the Crimson could not come out on top.

The first quarter saw the teams come out knotted at three goals apiece. A breakaway goal early in the second quarter gave the Poets (13-10, 1-0 SCIAC) a one point advantage going into the second half of play.

Harvard saw scoring from across the roster. Senior co-captain Shayna Price registered her third hat trick of the season in the loss, while freshman Lexi Del Toro and Andersen added two goals each.

Coming back from the half, both teams matched each other’s goals in the third quarter. The deciding factor in the game came in the fourth quarter, as Whittier was able to get two goals into the Crimson’s net, while Harvard’s scoring was silent.

“We had trouble in our first game,” Price said. “We didn’t come out to play and it showed in the loss but after that game we really picked it up and came out to play the rest of those three games.”

—Staff writer Ariel Smolik-Valles can be reached at asmolikvalles@college.harvard.edu.