Billy Tyler

Assistant Sports Editor

After a long hiatus, the women’s water polo team swam back into action last weekend and finished off its regular season on the road against Mercyhurst and Princeton. The Bison topped Mercyhurst 14-6 on April 6, but fell in their regular season finale to No. 12 Princeton 14-5 on April 7. The Orange and the Blue concluded their regular season with a record of 5-15 overall and 2-3 in CWPA Southern Division play.

Against Mercyhurst, the Bison jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the first quarter, and continued to pile on goals in the second quarter to gain an 8-2 advantage by halftime. Though Mercyhurst’s offense picked up in the second half, the Orange and the Blue allowed no more than two goals during any quarter, largely in part to goalie Rena Heim ’14 and her 10 saves. Leading the offense for the Bison were Taylor Barnett ’15 and Hannah Sunday ’16 with four goals each, while Barbara Peterson ’15 also found the back of the cage twice.

The Bison found a more challenging opponent in Princeton, the eighth nationally-ranked team the Orange and Blue have faced in the past month. The Bison were able to grab a 4-1 lead over Princeton in the first quarter, and went into halftime with the score tied 5-5. The Bison offense would be held scoreless for the remainder of the match, while Princeton went on a 9-0 scoring streak to put the match out of reach. Leading the Bison offense this time was Julianne Valdes ’14, with two goals and one assist, while Heim recorded 10 saves for the second straight game.

Next up for the Bison will be the Southern Championships, where they will once again face top-seeded Princeton. The Bison will travel to Brown University for this rematch on Saturday at 10 a.m.