Propelled by last year’s unprecedented success and this year’s fresh talent, the men’s water polo team is roaring into the season. After dropping the season opener to Cal Baptist, the Tigers capitalized on their conditioning and battled back to win their next three games in convincing fashion.
Now, Princeton has the chance to show the East Coast that it can capitalize on its success. The No. 17 Tigers (3-1) travel to Cambridge, Mass., this weekend to compete in the ECAC Championship. Though a young team, Princeton will likely have a target on its back as the tournament’s No. 2 seed.
After a first round bye, the Tigers face the winner of an opening-round match between Harvard and MIT. Though no member of Princeton’s roster has ever lost to MIT, the Engineers have played the Tigers tough in the quarterfinals of the 2008 and 2009 Eastern Championships. And with Harvard having the luxury of playing in its home pool, Princeton’s opening game figures to be a challenge.
If Princeton advances, it faces a potential semifinal matchup against No. 3 seed and 13th-ranked St. Francis and a showdown in the finals against No. 1 seed and 20th-ranked Bucknell.
In the Princeton Invitational last Friday afternoon, Princeton blasted into the water in full force, trading goals with then-No. 17 Cal Baptist throughout the first half. Senior center defender and co-captain Matt Hale found the back of the net twice, and sophomore center defender Billy Tifft tied the game at 3-3. But a pair of late first-half goals and another two early in the second gave the Lancers enough momentum to take charge. Senior goalie and co-captain Mike Merlone recorded eight saves, leading a strong Princeton defense in the back half of the game. Unable to recover offensively, however, the Tigers fell 11-5.
Princeton only needed six hours to correct its mistakes. On Friday night, the Tigers topped then-No. 13 and traditional powerhouse Santa Clara, 11-9. After spending the bulk of his freshman season on the bench, sophomore attack Tommy Donahue established himself as a critical component to the team’s success against Santa Clara. Donahue halved an early 2-0 deficit two minutes, 30 seconds into the game and finished the night with three goals and three assists.
“Tommy has exceeded any possible expectations so far,” Hale said. “He has immediately made an impact and become one of our best players. His attitude has been refreshed and his love of the game is contagious. He’s a real asset to the team in and out of the water.”
Back in the water, Princeton and Santa Clara traded goals for the remainder of the half, and the teams entered the intermission tied at 6-6. Building off his two first-half goals, sophomore attack Tim Wenzlau proved unstoppable in the second, scoring three more times for a career high of five goals.
“Beating a very good Santa Clara team was great for us,” Hale said. “It was our first good game after losing to Cal Baptist, and we proved to ourselves that we can be a very competitive team this year. We aren’t going to be complacent.”
The Tigers were certainly not complacent the following morning. Princeton charged to a 5-0 lead over Fordham in less than six minutes. Two goals each from junior attack Chris Cottrell, Wenzlau and Donahue and scores from Hale, junior center Mike Helou and senior attack Tommy Parolin ensured Princeton an enduring lead, and the team rolled to a 9-5 win.
The game against Fordham reaffirmed Merlone’s prowess in goal. Playing three quarters, Merlone made eight saves and recorded three assists.
“We have the best goalie on the East Coast in Mike,” Hale said. “It gives us a lot of confidence to go out and play our game, knowing he is there to back us up. If he is playing his best, he is very difficult to beat.”
Aided by an explosive offense, Merlone proved impossible to beat Saturday night: Princeton battled back from two first-half deficits to top Harvard 14-9.
Merlone’s eight saves raised his weekend total to 34 and garnered him the Collegiate Water Polo Association Defensive Player of the Week honor.
Wenzlau led the offensive effort, scoring five times to equal his career high. With 14 points during the Princeton Invitational, Wenzlau was named the CWPA Southern Division Player of the Week.
But Wenzlau is focusing on the team’s ultimate goal: winning the Eastern Championship for the second year in the row. In its most successful season in history, the squad won the title and took third at the NCAA Championships last year.
“The success of last year has a huge influence on the team this year,” Wenzlau said. “We learned hard work paid off. Everybody on the team saw how our efforts in practice translated to winning in competitions.”
Though the team is young, the Princeton Invitational demonstrated that hard work is translating into speed and endurance, which will enable the Tigers to outswim the opposition in the fourth quarter.
“We know we have to work even harder than last year and expect nothing but hard games all season,” Hale said. “Unlike last year, we won’t go into any games expecting to win, but this year’s team will be ready to fight against all our opponents.”
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