GW Women's Water Polo Back in Action This Weekend
4/9/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Water Polo
 |  | Follow @GW_WaterPolo |
April 9, 2015
WASHINGTON - The George Washington women's water polo team returns to the pool this weekend for three Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) games at Princeton's DeNunzio Pool. The Colonials will take on No. 15 Michigan on Saturday at 2:05 p.m. before a doubleheader on Sunday against No. 16 Indiana at 11:40 a.m. and Notre Dame (Ohio) at 3:40 p.m.
GW (11-10, 0-4 CWPA) has won five of its last seven games but has not played since March 28, when it split a pair of home matches against No. 10 Princeton and St. Francis Brooklyn.
Freshman Jacqueline Bywater is GW's single-season scoring leader with 114 points, and her 67 goals on the year are four shy of Kira Canon's 12-year-old record of 71. In addition, the rookie's 47 assists are third-most by a Colonial in a season and her 67 steals rank fourth.
Bywater and classmate Scarlett Hallahan have combined to score 126 goals - more than 51 percent of GW's offensive output this season. Hallahan's 59 goals on the year rank fourth on GW's single-season list, while her 88 points rank seventh.
Junior Hannah Cox, who is third on the team with 43 goals this season, has scored 40 goals for the third year in a row. She ranks seventh all-time at GW with 145 goals in her career and is five away from becoming the seventh player in program history with 150 career markers.
Sophomore Maddy Johnson has posted career highs across the board in 2015 with 32 goals, 32 assists, 64 points and 31 steals, ranking among the team's top four in all four categories. Freshman Erin McGeoy leads the Colonials with 32 ejections drawn to go with her 23 goals and 19 steals.
Freshman Maggie Ball's 57 steals rank second on the team to Bywater and are seventh on GW's single-season list. Ball also boasts a team-best 13 blocks on the year, tied for third-most by a Colonial in a season, while Hallahan's 11 rank seventh.
In the cage, senior goalkeeper Chandler Vilander has recorded 155 saves this season and 657 in her career, ranking fourth all-time.
No. 15 Michigan (12-10, 3-0 CWPA) has won six in a row, including a 13-12 double-overtime victory over Indiana last Saturday. Ali Thomason is the reigning CWPA Player of the Week after scoring six goals against the Hoosiers. Caroline Anderson leads the Wolverines with 61 points (28g, 33a) and 38 steals, followed by Thomason with 53 points (33g, 20a) and 37 steals. Goalkeepers Emily Browning and Julia Campbell have split time in cage this season, combining for a stellar 7.35 goals-against average and .538 save percentage.
Saturday's contest will be the first meeting between GW and Michigan since 2012 and the 13th overall.
No. 16 Indiana (13-11, 1-1 CWPA) is coming off a 13-12 overtime loss to Michigan last Saturday, its third loss in the last five games. Kelli Matthews paces the Hoosiers with 60 points (43g, 17a), followed closely by Candyce Schroeder with 59 (38g, 21a). Summer Creighton has posted a team-best 48 steals, and goalie Mary Campbell boasts an 8.30 goals-against average.
GW and Indiana have not met since 2011, a 13-8 victory for the Hoosiers. Sunday's match will be the 10th all-time meeting between the teams.
Notre Dame (Ohio) is 1-8 on the year, including 0-3 in CWPA contests, but the Falcons have not played since falling to Michigan, 20-2, on March 25. Gina-Bella Mata'afa scored both of NDC's goals against the Wolverines.
GW is 2-0 all-time against the Falcons, including a 19-9 victory at the 2015 season-opening Bison Invitational in February. Bywater matched a program record with eight goals and 11 points in the triumph - her first of two games reaching those marks this season - while Hallahan added 10 points on five goals and five assists.
