PRINCETON, N.J. – No. 22 Harvard women's water polo won its first games at the Princeton Invitational on Saturday, topping Villanova (0-5) 15-7 before a 20-2 victory over St. Francis Brooklyn (2-5). The Crimson improves to 7-1 on the season and extends its winning streak to five games.
 
Game 1: Harvard 15, Villanova 7
The Crimson matched up with Villanova for a third time this season, with this third matchup coming at a neutral site, after the first two meetings were held at Villanova. Harvard continued its stellar play against the Wildcats, getting out to a 3-1 lead after the first period behind two goals from Dany Zapata and a score from Quinne Pursell. The Crimson broke the game open in the second frame, with Brooke Hourigan netting a hat-trick within the period, to give Harvard a 9-2 lead at the half.
 
Borden Wahl got the second half started by adding a pair of goals to her ledger, followed by tallies from Zapata and Pursell to extend the lead. Harvard held the Wildcats to just one goal for the third straight period, and led 15-3 after three, with the final goals coming from Jaiden Miller and Grace Thawley. Villanova would add four goals in the final frame, giving the Crimson a 15-7 victory at DeNunzio Pool.

Harvard Highlights Game 1

• Senior Quinne Pursell scored three goals while adding a steal. First-year Dany Zapata and sophomore Brooke Hourigan also totaled three goals in the victory.
• Junior Jaiden Miller netted two goals while contributing two steals and a block.
• Sophomore Ella Prentice tallied five DKO's while junior Grace Thawley added four.
• Sophomore goalie Alexis Kieckhafer collected seven saves in net while adding a steal and assist.

Game 2: Harvard 20, St. Francis Brooklyn 2
Harvard wasted no time getting on the scoresheet against the Terriers, finding goals within the first minute from Brooke Hourigan and Borden Wahl. Hourigan added another while Dany Zapata found the back of the net, and Harvard held a 4-2 lead with two minutes remaining in the first. Zoe Banks, making her fourth start in goal this season, would go on to shutout the Terriers for the remaining 26 minutes of play while making 11 total saves. Hourigan would add her third goal before the half, while Dany Zapata and Inde Halligan each scored twice, and Harvard held an 11-2 lead through 16 minutes.
 
Evan Tingler scored her first goal of the game to begin the Harvard scoring in the second half, as Hourigan would add two more in the third period, and the Crimson went into the final frame with a 15-2 advantage. Hourigan completed her career-day with a sixth goal to begin the fourth, and Harvard added late goals from Grace Thawley, Jaiden Miller, Quinne Pursell, and Erin Kim to reach the 20-goal mark and complete the 2-0 day.
 
Harvard Highlights Game 2

• Senior Inde Halligan totaled three goals, four steals, two blocks and an assist to lead the Crimson.
• Sophomore Brooke Hourigan netted a career-high six goals to go along with two steals.
• Junior goalie Zoe Banks made 11 saves in net while allowing just two goals (.846 SV%).
• Junior Jaiden Miller filled the stat sheet with a goal, three assists and two steals. First-year Erin Kim added three assists while scoring a goal.

Game Notes

• Harvard improves to 7-1 on the season, with three of the wins coming against Villanova.
• The Crimson allowed two goals or less for the first time since a 10-2 victory over George Washington on April 29, 2018,
• Harvard reached the 20-goal mark for the second time this season, previously netting 20 in its season-opening win at Villanova. 

What's Next? 
Harvard returns for day two of the Princeton Invitational tomorrow, set for a matchup with No. 17 LIU at 10:30 a.m. before taking on VMI at 1:00 p.m.