A midterm look at w. water polo

The 2004 season has been going well for the women's water polo team. The Tigers (19-7 overall) have proven their depth and skill throughout the last couple of months, competing against some of the top teams on the East Coast and doing the same in California.

Despite a heartbreaking loss to Brown this weekend at the ECAC Championships, a title that the women brought home last year, the Tigers have managed a successful season thus far and are looking ahead to the Eastern Championships and Southern Championships, as well as this weekend when they will host the Olympics-bound Team USA at DeNunzio Pool.

Overall, the Tigers have had no blowout losses, while many of their wins have been extremely one-sided, including a 17-2 win over Marist at the beginning of the season and an 18-3 win over Slippery Rock, in which 11 different Tigers put goals on the scoreboard. Additionally, Princeton has consistently beaten several different teams throughout the season, besting George Washington on three separate occasions and beating the likes of Bucknell, Villanova and Maryland twice each.

Spring Break demonstrated the skills that the team has been honing throughout the season and the overall improvement of the team as the Tigers journeyed to California to take on some of the top teams in the country. Princeton went 4-3 on the trip, topping UC-San Diego, Pacific, Redlands and Cal Baptist, while falling to UCLA, San Diego State and Loyola Marymount.

This past weekend was the first time the Tigers really got a chance to compete against some strong teams since their trip to California. Princeton went into the weekend with high hopes but found itself bested, 6-1, by Brown in the second round of play.

Now the Tigers will have some fun with Team USA this weekend in preparation for the upcoming Easterns at Villanova.

Princeton has several things in their favor. First of all, the Tigers have demonstrated that they have great skill and depth over the course of the season, and that they have the ability to compete with some of the top teams.

Princeton also has the advantage of several extremely strong freshmen. One of these is utility Elyse Colgan, who has been one of the leading scorers for Princeton this season, consistently putting goals on the scoreboard and frequently leading the Tigers in scoring in various games. Last weekend, Colgan netted six goals and was named to the ECAC All-Tournament second team.

Freshman driver Jazmin Brown has posted several goals of her own and consistently wins three or four of her sprints in different games. Her classmate, driver Megan Donahue, has also done well this season for the Tigers, scoring six goals this past weekend and being named to the ECAC All-Tournament first team.

Despite the depth of the team, the Tigers have been challenged by the loss of two key players. Freshman driver Megan Zitren is out for the rest of the season following knee surgery, and sophomore utility Courtney Mee is also out after sustaining a fractured arm blocking a shot in practice last week. Both Zitren and Mee are strong players offensively and defensively, and leave open spaces on the team in which their teammates must step up and prove themselves.

Also, despite strong performances in goal from junior Madeline McCarthy, assisted by freshman Shannon DeVore and senior Lauren Lister, the team has struggled throughout the season on its man-up opportunities. If the Tigers hope to win Eastern Championships, they will need to work on their man-up strategies and perform more consistently when such opportunities are presented.

Despite such setbacks, the rest of the season could prove to be just as successful for the Tigers as the first part has been. From here on out it is all tournament competition for the Tigers . . . well, save for the Olympic treat this weekend. But the Tigers have the skill and depth needed to perform well and potentially go all the way this season — the team just needs to capitalize upon that skill and push for what it wants.