Men's Water Polo: Burst pipe in DeNunzio spoils midweek practices

“We miss DeNunzio,” sophomore goalie Ben Dearborn said while the building was shut down. “Not the frigid temperatures, maybe, or the long walk to the edge of campus, but the opportunity to play in one of, if not the, best facilities on the East Coast really is awesome.”

But the pool reopened on Thursday, giving the team ample time to practice and ensuring that it will be able to play its three games this weekend in the usual venue. No. 14 Princeton (14-7 overall, 5-2 CWPA Southern) will host George Washington (8-13, 2-4) on Friday before facing Fordham (6-16) and Iona (9-10) on Saturday, closing out its regular season in preparation for a handful of tournaments.

After perhaps the most intense weekend of the season to date — Princeton faced three league rivals, two of which had defeated the Tigers early in the season, and won two games in overtime — the hosts hope to close the season on a calmer note. Princeton is 4-0 against the three opponents it will take on this weekend, winning by a combined score of 56-24.

“Last weekend was a great success for us,” said junior attack Tim Wenzlau, who scored 10 goals in the Tigers’ three victories. “This upcoming weekend is going to be a bit more relaxed.”

After sweeping three Southern Division opponents last weekend, Princeton now stands alone in first place as the only team with just two losses. Bucknell (5-3) and Navy (3-3) still have a chance to share the title, but only if the Tigers lose to George Washington this weekend.

The hosts have no intention of letting that happen.

“We really want to carry the success that we had this past weekend into these upcoming games and through the rest of the season,” said Dearborn, who had two last-second saves to clinch a 10-9 overtime victory and a season sweep of Navy on Sunday night. “This weekend is just another chance for us to improve, see what else needs work and hopefully succeed again.”

Princeton travels to Harvard for the Ivy League Championships next weekend before returning home to host the more competitive Southern Championships on Nov. 4-6.