LEWISBURG, Pa. - George Washington women's water polo held off St. Francis (Pa.), 10-9, on Saturday afternoon at Bucknell's Kinney Natatorium for its first CWPA victory of the season.

Earlier in the day, the Colonials fell to Brown, 11-7, in the same pool to kick off the conference doubleheader.

Alana Ponce totaled a team-high six goals over the two games and also led the Buff and Blue with nine saves on a day they split duties in net with goalkeeper Samantha Runyon sidelined.

GW 10, St. Francis (Pa.) 9: Ponce scored all four of her goals in the second half to power the Colonials (6-11, 1-4 CWPA).

After St. Francis tied it at six midway through the third quarter, Ponce ran off three straight scores. The sophomore's goal in the opening minute of the fourth made it 9-6.

Ponce's final goal answered back-to-back tallies from St. Francis, pushing the lead to 10-8 with 3:02 left. The Red Flash were able to pull within a goal about a minute later, but the Colonials held the score there to close out the victory.

Two weeks after scoring a buzzer-beater to take down St. Francis (Pa.) at Smith Center Pool, Ponce again starred against the Red Flash, making five saves in addition to her team-high goal total.

Jaleh Moaddeli notched a goal, two assists and a team-high five steals in the victory, while Katherine Atherton set a career high with four helpers. Hannah Hathaway and Kira Bruno scored twice vs. the Red Flash with Allison DeCicco also finding the net.

Juliette Belanger also saw time in net for the Buff and Blue and recorded three saves.

Brown 11, GW 7: After falling behind by five goals early in the second half, the Colonials responded with three straight scores to close the gap but couldn't complete the comeback against the Bears.

Brown built its lead with a 5-0 run between the second and third quarters before goals from Moaddeli, Ponce and Belanger helped GW pull within 8-6 with 5:42 left. Brown countered, though, notching back-to-back scores over the next 90 seconds to restore the cushion.

Ponce and Belanger netted two goals apiece for the Colonials, while Moaddeli posted a goal, two assists and two steals. Atherton and Bruno also scored in the opener.

Ponce (4 saves), Moaddeli (1) and Belanger (1) shared netminding duties against the Bears.

UP NEXT: GW wraps the regular season Sunday, facing off against No. 6 Michigan at 10:30 a.m. in the same pool.

Brown 11, GW 7
B--2-2-4-3--11
GW--2-1-2-2--7

GW Goals: Ponce 2, Belanger 2, Bruno 1, Moaddeli 1, Atherton 1.
GW Assists: Bruno 2, Moaddeli 2, Ponce 1, Carlson 1, DeCicco 1.
GW Steals: Bruno 2, Moaddeli 2, Ponce 1.
GW Field Blocks: Ponce 3, Tomasi 1, Carlson 1.
GW Ejections Drawn: Ponce 4, Belanger 1, Shaffer 1.
GW Saves: Ponce 4, Moaddeli 1, Belanger 1.

GW 10, St. Francis (Pa.) 9
SF--2-2-2-3--9
GW--1-4-3-2--10

GW Goals: Ponce 4, Hathaway 2, Bruno 2, Moaddeli 1, DeCicco 1.
GW Assists: Atherton 4, Moaddeli 2, Shaffer 1, Hathaway 1, Bruno 1.
GW Steals: Moaddeli 5, Carlson 2, Belanger 1, Atherton 1, Tomasi 1, Shaffer 1, Bruno 1.
GW Field Blocks: Ponce 1.
GW Ejections Drawn: Atherton 2, Belanger 1, Carlson 1.
GW Saves: Ponce 5, Belanger 3.