PRINCETON, N.J. – No. 22 Harvard women's water polo completed its 4-0 showing at the Princeton Invitational, taking down No. 17 LIU (4-4), 9-8, before posting a 21-5 victory over VMI (0-7). The Crimson improves to 9-1 on the season and extends its winning streak to seven games.
Game 1: Harvard 9, LIU 8
Harvard returned to DeNunzio Pool as
Zoe Banks drew the start in net for game one against the Sharks. The Crimson got off to a dream start and held a 3-0 lead just over three minutes into play. The class of 2024 trio featuring
Evan Tingler,
Grace Thawley and
Jaiden Miller got Harvard out to this lead, as Miller would add another to give the Crimson a 4-2 lead after one period. The second frame saw both teams struggle offensively, with Harvard's lone goal coming from
Erin Kim as Banks made seven first-half saves in route to a 5-3 halftime lead.
Harvard was able to extend its lead to four in the third period, with early goals coming from
Borden Wahl and
Brooke Hourigan. LIU began to string together more offensive chances, but Banks stood her ground and made six saves in the third period alone to limit LIU to another one-goal period. A
Dany Zapata goal would make it 8-4 headed into the fourth. The Sharks were able to deposit four goals in the final frame, but a
Grace Thawley tally right in between those four would prove to be the difference, as Harvard held on to come away with the 9-8 victory.
Harvard Highlights Game 1
Game 2: Harvard 21, VMI 5
The Crimson enjoyed its best offensive period of the season in the first frame against the Keydets, netting eight total goals from seven different goalscorers. The scoring began with
Ella Prentice and ended with
Grace Thawley, while
Kaity Greenwald accounted for the lone two-goal effort in the period. Thawley would add her second before the half, while
Quinne Pursell and
Brooke Hourigan each netted two in the second frame to give Harvard a 14-4 lead at the half.
Anne-Charlotte Gillard drew the start in net, allowing only one second half goal behind 10 total saves for the first-year. Thawley found her hat-trick in the third period, while
Borden Wahl and
Ella Prentice both scored twice in the second half to increase the Harvard advantage. The Crimson went on to post a season-high 21 goals and take down VMI, 21-5, to close out its 4-0 weekend in Princeton.
Harvard Highlights Game 2
- Sophomore Ella Prentice totaled three goals, four assists and two steals to lead the Crimson.
- Junior Grace Thawley posted three goals, two assists and steal in the victory.
- Junior Borden Wahl netted three goals to go along with three assists.
- First-year goalie Anne-Charlotte Gillard posted 10 saves on 15 shots faced (.667 SV%).
- First-year Kaity Greenwald scored a hat-trick while first-year Erin Kim added three steals and a goal.
Game Notes
- Harvard improves to 9-1 on the season and 2-1 in games against ranked opponents.
- The Crimson holds an all-time record of 3-0 against VMI.
- Harvard posted a season-high 21 goals in the win over VMI.
- The Crimson holds a 9-1 record through ten games for the second consecutive season.
What's Next?
Harvard will enjoy a weekend off before opening CWPA conference play on Saturday, Feb. 26, with a 9:00 a.m. matchup at Saint Francis (PA). The Crimson will then play a neutral site game against Mount Saint Mary's later that day at 4:30 p.m., hosted by Bucknell University. Harvard will round out the weekend with a 10:30 a.m. contest on Sunday, Feb. 27 at Bucknell against the Bison.
