Colonials Shoot for NCAA Championship Berth
4/29/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Water Polo
April 29, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC - The GW women's water polo team (13-14) will have the chance to earn a spot in the 2005 NCAA Championship when it competes at the CWPA Eastern Championship on April 30 and May 1 in Bloomington, IN. The winner of the eight-team competition will receive the CWPA's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
GW is seeded eighth for the tournament, which it has qualified for six times. It will play No. 10 Indiana, the event's top seed, in its opening match at 9:00 a.m. on April 30. The Colonials earned one of two at-large berths in the Eastern Championship. Their third-place finish at last weekend's Southern Championship helped solidify their spot in the field.
Three colonials have scored at least 30 goals this season. Sophomore Morgan Hooker leads the squad with 42 tallies. Classmate Jenna Burnett has 35 and senior captain Kendra Shanley has 30. Burnett also leads the club with 21 assists. Junior Amy Heinemann made 10 saves in GW's third-place match against Maryland last weekend to increase her season total to 181, the 24th-highest total in the nation. It also ranks third on GW's single-season saves list.
Indiana owns a 22-9 overall record. Krista Peterson is the team's top scorer with 51 goals. Bridget McKeon ranks second on the squad with 46. The Hoosiers are 10th in the nation with 291 goals scored.
The winner of Saturday morning's match will advance to meet either Hartwick or Harvard at 7:00 p.m.
The Colonials have never beaten Indiana. They are 0-5 all-time against the Hoosiers.
Tickets for the Eastern Championship will be available at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center on the days of competition. Prices are $15 for the entire championship, and $10 for a single-day pass. Children 12-and-under are free.
Live game updates and a complete schedule of events can be found on the CWPA Eastern Championship Web Site
