Crimson Drops Road Contest

While revenge may be sweet, the Harvard women’s water polo team learned it isn’t always easy.

During the opening of this year’s season, the Crimson faced rival Marist in a tight battle but fell, 12-10. This Saturday, in its last competition before Northern Division play begins, Harvard (11-9) again fell by two goals to the Red Foxes (7-12), losing, 10-8, in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

“It was a good game,” sophomore Ita Barton-Kettleborough said. “We kept fighting all the way through, but we couldn’t quite finish it.”

The first quarter started with a rampage from Marist as the Red Foxes took a 5-2 lead, with back-to-back goals from Marist senior Rachel Sunday, who was a thorn in the Crimson’s side the entire match.

“We just got off to a slow start,” Harvard sophomore goalkeeper Laurel McCarthy said. “[Sunday] had a great game. It’s just frustrating that we didn’t play as well as we could have. I think if we played them a third time we would beat them.”

Maintaining a three-point lead, the Red Foxes continued to put the pressure on McCarthy, taking a 7-4 lead into the locker room at halftime.

“We had a couple of runs where we really meshed as a team and other parts where we didn’t quite manage to cover each other as well,” said Barton-Kettleborough, who scored once for Harvard.

The first eight minutes of the second half proved a test for the Crimson, as Marist’s Sunday placed two more in the back of the net. Harvard remained scoreless in the third period, trailing, 9-4.

“I think we were a different team [from February] and they were a different team, but the game was quite similar,” Barton-Kettleborough said. “Both teams had parts of the game where they played really well and other parts where it didn’t go so well.”

While the Red Foxes owned the third period, the Crimson took control of the final eight minutes, scoring four goals to Marist’s one.

Freshman Aisha Price completed a hat trick for Harvard, while sophomore Shannon Purcell scored twice. Sophomores Devan Kennifer and Monica Zdrojewski joined Barton-Kettleborough in tallying one goal each.

“We had a really nice rally,” McCarthy said. “We almost came back and won it, but it was just too little, too late.”

“We really left it all in the pool in the fourth quarter,” she continued. “That’s our team, we aren’t going to quit.”

Missing from the Crimson’s score sheet was freshman Elise Molnar who remained out of the pool with a concussion sustained over spring break.

“We have such a small team that anytime someone is sick or injured it definitely affects the dynamics of the team,” McCarthy said. “We are not dependent on any one player, but we have a very small roster, so its important for everyone to stay healthy, stay uninjured.”

Even with Molnar out, Harvard continued to put pressure on senior opposing goalie Jessica Getchius. But with Getchius’ nine saves on the night, Saturday’s game became another learning tool for the defeated Crimson.

“There were definitely good points in which we had good play as a team,” Price said. “We’ve realized we have a lot to work on individually as players, and [in terms of] figuring out how to help each other look better and play well.”

“It was a case where we played as a team, and we lost as a team,” Barton-Kettleborough said. “It was a team effort all around.”

While Harvard will not face the Red Foxes again this season, the team looks forward to its next four matches, hopefully with Molnar back in the lineup. With five weekends until the Eastern Championships, the Crimson faces two games each against rivals Brown and Hartwick.

“It’s a matter of figuring out how to work better as a team,” Price said. “We are obviously learning a lot. We have [two weeks] before our next game, so we are just trying to work harder.”

—Staff writer Alex Sopko can be reached at sopko@fas.harvard.edu.