Women's Water Polo: Hostile natatorium overwhelms Tigers

The No. 19 women’s water polo team fell victim to the depths of Bucknell’s Kinney Natatorium on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers (12-8 overall, 0-1 Southern Division CWPA) were outperformed by the Bison early on and lost 15-10.

Bucknell (12-8, 4-0) struggled early on this season but has recently picked it up in league play. The Bison also took down George Washington and Maryland inside Kinney’s loud atmosphere this past weekend. It is a difficult natatorium to play in, as the Bucknell fans wave around their “Princeton Socks” and scream loud enough to drown out the referees’ whistles.

Princeton failed to come out strong against the Bison in the early quarters. Bucknell gained momentum in the first quarter by putting up six goals against a stunned Princeton defense. Sophomore goalie Kristen Ward only managed to stop three saves through three quarters of play. The Bison were firing on all cylinders behind driver Hallie Keenan’s six goals.

“It was mostly a defensive breakdown,” senior driver and tri-captain Helen Meigs said. “We should have adjusted earlier when Bucknell started lighting us up from the outside, but we were too committed to our drop and by the time we figured it out it was too late to stop the bleeding.

The Tigers were not able to fight back to make it a game due to Bucknell goalie Allison Carter, who stopped 15 of Princeton’s shots. The win for the Bison was their first over a ranked opponent this season.

Hampered by fouls, Princeton did not play up to its full potential. The Bison scored eight of their 15 goals on exclusionary penalties. The Tigers, on the other hand, were held to just three six-on-five goals prior to the fourth quarter.

When asked what the Tigers will need to change the next time they face the Bison, head coach Luis Nicolao replied “our mindset.”

“I am hoping this was just a bad day for us, and we plan to put it behind us and move forward,” he said.

The freshmen carried the Tigers’ scoring load this weekend. Freshman driver Brittany Zwirner notched three goals as fellow freshmen driver Rachelle Gyorffy and center Saranna Soroka each scored twice. The freshmen have transitioned into the college game quickly this season. They have contributed all year long for the Tigers, and their development in the future will be even more exciting for the team.

Senior tri-captain and driver Helen Meigs added a pair of goals, and junior driver Sarah Hutchinson and sophomore utility Audrey Zak each rifled goals past Carter. Unfortunately, Princeton did not have senior tri-captain and driver Phoebe Champion on Saturday due to illness. Even without Champion, though, the Tigers have the talent to drown the Bison when the teams face again in two weeks. Princeton did not come out with the intensity needed to win at Bucknell.

“I wish I knew,” said Nicolao, when asked what caused the slow start. “We just came out really flat, and they took advantage of that.”

“Next time we’re going to come out with a tighter and more aggressive defense,” Meigs said. “Bucknell gained momentum early in the game and we could not recover, but next time we plan to shut them down early so they lose all faith in their abilities as water polo players and as people in general.”

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Princeton has the next two weeks to train for the rest of its Southern Division games. The Tigers host Maryland, Bucknell and George Washington the weekend of April 10–11. Two weeks of solid practice with Nicolao and assistant coaches Derek Ellingson and Serela Kay could imbue the Tigers with a renewed sense of focus and put them back on track to win the Southern Division.