After an overtime loss to No. 11 Hartwick on Saturday, the women's water polo team bounced back to beat Harvard, 14-10, at home on Sunday. With the victory over Harvard — who had beaten Brown just the week before — the Bears clinched an automatic berth to the Eastern Championship.
The win was especially sweet for seniors and captains Stephanie Laing, Sarah Glick and Lauren Presant, as it was the last home game of their careers.
"It was apparent when we started the game that we were going to win it," Glick said. "Everyone played hard from the start, and we played really well together as a team."
After the first eight minutes, the Bears had a 3-1 lead over Harvard. They continued to dominate, and with 2:23 left in the first half they were up comfortably, 7-1. But in the final minute of the half, Harvard managed two quick goals, leaving Brown up four at halftime.
"There were some lapses in the defense at some points in the game," Glick said. "But we were able to overcome those lapses by scoring more goals."
The Bears didn't let Harvard's small rebound at the end of the half disrupt their momentum. Both teams netted two goals in the third quarter, bringing the score to 9-5.
Harvard continued to give Brown a fight, scoring five goals in the fourth quarter. But the Bears retaliated with five of their own, finishing the game ahead four goals, the same margin they had at the end of the first half.
Glick led Brown's offense with five goals and three assists, and earned the Women's Varsity Northern Division Player of the Week award.
Herald Senior Editor Joanna Wohlmuth '11 was also a strong contributor to the Bears' offense, scoring three goals. Avery Mosser '13, Claudia Ruiz '13, Brittany Westerman '13 and Presant each had one goal as well.
Laing had another impressive game in the net, making seven saves. She was named Defensive Player of the Week for the sixth time this season after making 46 saves over three games, an average of 15.3 saves per game.
The Bears will next travel to the University of Maryland to compete in the Eastern Championships on April 30.
Between now and then, the Bears will continue preparing. "We're going to keep working on our issues, like the occasional lapses in defense," Glick said. "We're just going to keep practicing hard."
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