Women's water polo to face challenging slate this weekend

After two weeks with no competition, the Princeton women’s water polo team will return to action this weekend when they travel to Lewisburg, Pa. for the Bucknell Invitational. The No. 15 Tigers (4-0) will face Wagner College and the Virginia Military Institute on Saturday before taking on Gannon University on Sunday.

Off to a great start to the season so far with a four-win sweep of the Princeton Invitational, including a tight victory over No. 25 California Baptist University, Princeton will look to keep its momentum going against another group of challenging opponents. No. 20 Wagner (7-7) should prove to be a real test for the Tigers despite their .500 record. Six of Wagner’s seven losses have come against ranked opponents, and the team has recorded impressive wins over No. 17 Long Beach State and No. 25 Bucknell. If the Tigers are to prevail, they will need to slow down centers Jess Lundgren and Lily Doerfler, who have combined for over half of the Seahawks goals this year.

In contrast to Wagner, Princeton can have little idea of what to expect from the Keydets, who will be playing their first match of the season when they take on the Tigers. Princeton did face the team last season, beating them 16-5 in the midst of a 14-game win streak. However, VMI will return with most of their roster from that previous encounter, unlike the Tigers, who graduated six seniors and lost star goalie Ashleigh Johnson to the U.S. Olympic squad. Nevertheless, Princeton will take encouragement that two of its leading scorers from last season’s game, sophomore utility Haley Wan and junior two-meter Hannah Lapkin, will be in the pool for Saturday’s game and are both off to strong starts so far this year.

On Sunday, the Tigers will face a Gannon team (2-3) whom they also beat last year, prevailing 11-3 in the same tournament at Bucknell. That game featured three goals from junior center Morgan Hallock, another standout performer at this early point in the season. Hallock currently has the third most goals on the team, with eight, and leads the way in both steals and ejections drawn. A repeat of her performance from last season would go a long way toward ensuring a Princeton victory this time around as well.

This weekend’s games will be another test for the young Tigers, still adjusting to their new roles, as they try to return to the NCAA tournament to defend their conference title.