Perfect season continues for Tigers

The women's water polo team continued its stellar start to the season this weekend when it hosted conference rivals George Washington University (4-7 overall, 0-2 Collegiate Water Polo Association) and No. 17 Bucknell University (10-3 overall, 1-1 CWPA) at DeNunzio Pool. The Tigers (7-0 overall, 2-0 CWPA) easily defeated the Colonials, handing them a crushing 10-3 defeat, then extended their season-opening winning streak to seven by pulling out a close 6-5 victory over the Bucknell Bison.

Leading the attack for No. 15 Princeton against Bucknell was junior two-meter Elyse Colgan, who scored three goals to thwart the resilient Bison attack. At the half, the Tigers found themselves behind, 4-2, and it looked as though the Orange and Black may have been approaching its first loss of the year.

Following the break, however, a resurgent Princeton squad responded with three well-timed goals to quickly give the Tigers the lead. Princeton's come-from-behind victory was largely the product of the efforts of junior driver Jazmin Brown, who scored twice to help seal the narrow win.

Defensively, the Tigers were led by sophomore goalkeeper Natalie Kim, who made seven saves. Kim's efforts, as well as the late offensive push by Brown, proved to be just enough for the Tigers to pull out the win despite making some costly errors during the match that could have proved devastating.

"We will see Bucknell again this weekend and it will give us an opportunity to work on some of the mistakes we made this past weekend," Colgan said.

Playing for country

On Sunday, Colgan was given the honor of being named to the U.S. Water Polo National Team, a position reserved for the top 25 players in the nation. Colgan has racked up 17 goals for the Tigers thus far in the season — tops on the team — and has also led the Tigers in scoring both her freshman and sophomore seasons. In her first two seasons, Colgan was twice recognized as the Southern Most Valuable Player Award and was also named to the Eastern and Southern first-teams.

As a member of the U.S. National Team, Colgan will represent the United States in highly competitive matches internationally over the course of the next four years. If she remains a member of the team, she will represent the United States in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

In the Tigers first game, which was against George Washington, they seemed to have their work cut out for them. The Colonials fielded a strong group of players, and by halftime, Princeton was nursing a thin 2-1 lead. With their offense stagnating, the defense had to pull together to rebuff the persistent George Washington attack. That would all soon change, though, as the Tigers opened up the second half with an onslaught of scoring to put away the Colonials.

Junior two-meter Samantha Shaughnessy led the Tigers with three goals and was one of seven Princeton players to put points on the board. The breadth of the scoring effort is a testament to the depth of this year's Princeton squad, which has helped them in close games throughout the year.

Over spring break, the Tigers will take a training trip to California, providing them with an opportunity to face stiff competition from traditionally strong West Coast teams. Princeton will play Santa Clara, UC Santa Cruz, No. 9 San Jose State, Cal State Monterey, Sonoma State, No. 2 Stanford and No. 6 UC Berkeley. The trip will give the Tigers a chance to focus on the weaknesses that have threatened to compromise their unblemished year.

"Our spring break training trip to California is always a great experience," Colgan said. "We play new teams and have a chance to improve while playing at a high level."

The Tigers' next match is in Lewisburg, Pa., on March 11, where they will face the Maryland Terrapins.