Harvard Women’s Water Polo Loses to USC in NCAA Quarterfinals

No. 8 Harvard women’s water polo (26-7) made its first program NCAA Tournament appearance in Friday’s first-round match, ultimately falling 18-7 to No. 3 University of Southern California (28-4).

The loss ended the Crimson’s historic 2025 season, which included achievements such as a new single-season win record of 26 and the program’s first-ever CWPA Championship Title.

Battling throughout the season against several Top 25 teams, Harvard rose from No. 21 to No. 8 in the CWPA polls. But, in the first-round NCAA matchup, the Crimson could not prevail over USC’s strong offense, failing to put together enough goals to close the gap.

The first period began with both teams taking speed and power off their shots, focusing instead on placing the ball strategically out of both talented goalkeepers’ reaches.

In less than a minute, USC scored its first point, but was promptly countered by junior attacker Ruby Hodge’s goal less than 30 seconds later.

On several instances, the Trojans’ fast-paced offense allowed them to speed ahead of the Crimson defenders and get one-on-one shots on the Harvard goal. However, freshman goalkeeper Orli Cooper shut down many of these attempts, tallying 10 total saves in the game.

More than halfway through the first quarter, USC managed two successive goals from quick passes and scrambles in front of the net. The Crimson struggled to get close to the Trojans’ goal, as its opponent’s aggressive defense kept Harvard far from it.

The Trojans scored again on another breakaway, racing ahead of the Crimson and putting themselves up 4-1. But Hodge kept Harvard’s momentum alive by muscling the ball past the goal line soon after.

With only seconds left in the first quarter, the Crimson left the goal unattended to make a seven-man push, but were unsuccessful.

In an unfortunate turn of events, a USC player, left with only a second on the clock, launched the ball across the pool into the empty Harvard net to put the Trojans up 5-2 at the end of the first quarter.

Seemingly demoralized by the buzzer-beater goal, the Crimson could only score a point in the second period after USC put away two of its own more than three minutes in.

Sophomore center defender Emma Gilbert delivered the back-hand goal, but the Trojans remained well above the Crimson throughout the eight minutes, finishing the first half of the match up 10-3.

The third period began on a more promising note for Harvard, as sophomore attacker Maya O’Dea earned a penalty shot in the first few seconds.

USC’s offensive onslaught – especially in transition – outpaced the Crimson despite facing resistance from Cooper, who secured key back-to-back blocks.

Harvard fought hard for power play opportunities, but failed to capitalize on them. Several of the Crimson’s passes missed their marks, causing scrambles and wasting precious shot clock seconds.

Hodge once again disrupted Harvard’s scoring drought, earning her hat trick with an impressive skipper shot past three Trojan defenders and the goalkeeper.

O’Dea then ended the third quarter with her second successful penalty shot, but the Crimson entered the final eight minutes facing a difficult 13-6 deficit.

Much to Harvard’s dismay, USC scored within the first 35 seconds of the period. Continually beating their opponents to their own goal, the Trojans’ transition plays seemed like unstoppable points.

The Crimson’s passes, barely missing the mark, continued to harm its offense by preventing the team from converting on defensive efforts and steals.

USC’s defenders swarmed any Harvard attackers who pushed close to the goal, stifling all shot attempts but one. With less than two minutes remaining, senior attacker Erin Kim outsmarted the Trojans with an unexpected, distanced goal to put the Crimson on the scoreboard for the period.

However, the buzzer sounded soon after, signaling the end of Harvard’s record-breaking season as USC moved on to the NCAA semifinals.

“Now that we have a CWPA title and NCAA experience under our belt, we now have zero doubts that we can win again, and we have so much confidence in this group,” Hodge wrote to The Crimson.

Looking ahead to the 2026 season, the Crimson will say goodbye to three seniors and welcome its incoming freshmen class.

“But first, we are able to take this time to appreciate how special this group is and how this group made Harvard history in so many ways this season,” Hodge wrote. “This is just the beginning.”