Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
No. 18 Women's Water Polo to Host Bucknell, CWPA/MAAC Crossover
February 23, 2012 | Women's Water Polo
The No. 18 Princeton women's water polo team returns home riding their perfect 8-0 record to play five games at DeNunzio Pool. The Tigers open up CWPA Southern Division action versus Bucknell on Friday, Feb. 24 at 8 p.m., before hosting the two-day CWPA/MAAC Crossover from Feb. 25-26. Princeton will face Iona, Siena, Villanova and Wagner at the four-game event.
CWPA/MAAC Crossover Schedule
Saturday
10:15 a.m. vs. Iona
2 p.m. vs. Siena
7:45 p.m. vs. Wagner
Sunday
4:30 p.m. vs. Villanova
Gross Named Southern Division Rookie of the Week: Freshman Kelly Gross capped off a standout weekend of work at the Bucknell Invitational by being named the Southern Division Rookie of the Week, her first career collegiate honor. At the weekend tournament, Gross tallied six goals, six assists, four steals, two drawn ejections and a block.
She is the second consecutive Tiger to earn a weekly honor, as Kristen Ward was named Defensive Player of the Week.
In the Polls: Behind their perfect 8-0 record, the Tigers moved up a place to No. 18 in the CWPA Varsity Top 20 Poll. Princeton entered the year holding a No. 18 preseason ranking.
Scouting Bucknell: Bucknell (3-5 overall, 0-1 Southern Division) is coming off a 1-3 weekend at its two-day tournament last weekend. The team saw its lone win over Siena, 13-7, before dropping one-goal games to Brown, 8-7, and Wagner, 9-8, and a 15-9 loss to then-No. 16 Hartwick. Amanda Skonezney leads the Bison offense with 16 goals, while both Brittany Connell and Rena Heim have split duties in the cage and combine for a .447 saves percentage.
Scouting Iona: Iona returns to action after a nearly three-week hiatus from play. The Gaels, 2-0, opened the year with wins over Harvard and Villanova on Feb. 4 at the Iona Invite. Alyssa Turza leads the way with five goals and goalie Marisa Gaynor posts 13 saves on the season.
Scouting Siena: The Saints of Siena travel to Princeton holding a 1-3 overall record to face the Tigers for the second consecutive weekend. Princeton handed Siena a 14-5 loss on Feb. 19 at the Bucknell Invite last weekend. The Saint defense is led by Madeline Huley, who has a 14.00 goals against average in 96 minutes of work. She's tallied 27 saves, while allowing 69 goals against. Katie Ness leads the Siena offense, with seven goals.
Scouting Villanova: Villanova returns to Princeton's DeNunzio Pool for its second consecutive tournament. The Wildcats (0-7) last game was an 11-2 loss to Princeton on Feb. 12. Goalie Maddi Moore has tallied 45 saves, while allowing 78 goals against for a 13.00 goals against average. The Wildcats are led by Julia Penkal's nine goals.
Scouting Wagner: Wagner is coming off a 1-3 weekend at the Bucknell Invitational, dropping their overall record to 4-7 on the year. Chelsea Beck, this week's MAAC Offensive Player of the Week, headlines the Wagner offense with 24 goals and 12 assists in 11 starts. Laura Karbach has played every minute in goal for the Seahawks, tallying 111 saves, 107 goals against and a .509 saves percentage.