WomenOs water polo goalkeeper Lisa Greenfield said winning two of three games this weekend kicks off the conference season just right. Now the Colonials can face the conference with the confidence that comes with a winning record and the knowledge that it kept pace with Princeton, the No. 15 team in the country.
The Colonials (9-4, 2-1 Collegiate Water Polo Association) opened the three-team meet at the Smith Center with a 9-4 loss to the Tigers. Despite that, Greenfield said her team was proud of its performance because the Colonials proved they can compete with the nationOs best.
“WeOre contenders,” she said. “We definitely have talent and strength to beat these teams. We just have to know it going in.”
GW kept pace, staying just behind 3-2 through halftime and 6-4 through the third quarter. Not even in the matchOs final quarter, when the Tigers scored four times did the Colonials lose confidence, Greenfield said. The goalkeeper helped her team by recording 10 saves.
She said it was about “stepping it up when it comes to big-name teams.”
Next, GW defeated Bucknell 9-7 in its second match of the day with four goals from sophomore Mia Fabian and three from junior Ashley Pyka.
Fabian scored two early goals and Vanessa Fravel scored one lifting GW to a 3-1 lead after the first quarter. The Bison countered in the second quarter by out-scoring GW 3-1, tying the game at four goals apiece.
Tough Colonials defense held the Bison in the third quarter. Tied at six, Greenfield, who would make five saves, made a key one and in transition hit Pyka, who maneuvered past a sleeping defense and scored to giving the Colonials a one-goal advantage. Fabian then added another goal to seal the 9-7 win.
The Colonials then defeated Villanova 14-4, Greenfield said, in a game highlighted by a goal from senior Beth Kuhl, who scored her first collegiate goal this season in her last home meet.
Greenfield said the team entered the tournament with confidence after its western swing where the Colonials went 3-1 at the Claremont Invite, good for 2nd place out of 12.
“WeOre looking good,” Fabian said. “The California trip really helped us play as a team.”
