Women’s Water Polo Hosts 2019 CWPA Championship

Friday, April 26

Providence, RI

4:00 PM

Brown University

Harvard University

Women’s Water Polo Hosts 2019 CWPA Championship

4/24/2019 1:09:00 PM | Women's Water Polo

Tournament Central Live Video Championship Bracket

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – No. 5 seed Brown University women's water polo hosts No. 4 seed and No. 16 ranked Harvard University in the first round of the Collegiate Water Polo Association Championship on Friday, Apr. 26 at 4:00 p.m. with the Bears hosting all 10 games of the tournament at the Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center from Apr. 26-28.

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Championship Info: Live Video | Tournament Central | Schedule | Bracket
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THE MATCHUP
No. 5 seed Brown (19-12, 2-4 CWPA) meets No. 4 seed and No. 16 ranked Harvard (20-6, 3-3 CWPA) in the first round of the CWPA Championship on Friday in the final game of the day at 4:00 p.m. During the regular season, the Bears dropped a narrow 7-6 decision on the road to the then-No. 15 ranked Crimson in the CWPA opener for both teams.

The winner of the matchup will advance to the tournament's semifinals and meet No. 1 seed and No. 6 ranked Michigan (21-8, 6-0 CWPA) on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The loser will play in the consolation on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. against the loser of No. 2 seed and No. 15 ranked Princeton (19-8, 5-1 CWPA) and No. 7 seed St. Francis (Pa.) (9-24, 0-6 CWPA).

The tournament's other first-round matchup includes No. 3 seed and No. 21 ranked Bucknell (23-11, 4-2 CWPA) facing No. 6 seed George Washington (6-12, 1-5 CWPA).

SCOUTING THE CRIMSON
Harvard concluded the regular season with a 20-6 overall record and a 3-3 mark in CWPA contests. The Crimson opened the season with a 10-0 record before working through a 2-3 stretch. Harvard then closed the month of March with six wins in its last seven outings prior to going 2-2 in the month of April.

BRUNO AT THE CWPA CHAMPIONSHIP
At the CWPA Championship, Brown has reached the semifinals five times, finished as the runner up in 2003, and won the tournament title in 2001. The Bears have come in fourth at the championship three times, most recently in 2012 as well as in 2004 and 2009. Brown placed fifth in three straight years from 2013-15 and came in sixth in 2018.

STATISTICAL LEADERS
Freshman Katie Klein (Lafayette, Calif.) leads Brown with 51 goals on the season alongside 19 assists, 27 steals, and 30 ejections drawn while fellow freshman Dagmara Czajka (San Diego, Calif.) ranks second on the team with 33 goals to go with 20 assists, 42 steals, and a team-high 21 field blocks.

Senior McKenna Miller (Danville, Calif.) leads the team in steals (43) and ejections drawn (60), while tallying 32 goals, 25 assists, and 12 field blocks. Fellow senior Maigrie McDougal (Sacramento, Calif.) has registered 27 goals, 14 assists, 23 steals, 13 field blocks, and 33 ejections drawn.

Sophomore Carissa Perez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) paces the team with 48 assists, while compiling 27 goals, 28 steals, and 26 ejections drawn. Senior Carmen Rosas (Schaumburg, Ill.) has scored 21 goals, freshman Lili Akin (Santa Barbara, Calif.) has added 20 assists and 28 steals, and junior Lexi Atwell (La Jolla, Calif.) has contributed 19 assists and 21 steals.

IN THE CAGE
Junior goalkeeper Lauren Burns (Long Grove, Ill.) has paced the Bears in the cage, making 178 saves on the season on a .580 save percentage. She has made double-figure saves in each of nine games and added seven assists and nine steals on the year.

Freshman net-minder Marley Presiado (Newport Beach, Calif.) has supported her with 107 saves on a .557 save percentage. She has tallied double-figure saves in each of three contests and chipped in four assists and 18 steals on the season.

START & FINISH
Brown opened the season with a 10-2 record, including a nine-game winning streak from Feb. 2 to Feb. 24. The stretch included a 4-2 record at the Bruno Classic, a 2-0 mark at the Princeton Invitational, and a 4-0 record at the Marist Invitational.

The Bears then closed the regular season with four wins in their last five outings, including league wins over George Washington and St. Francis (Pa.) as well as a non-conference victory over then-No. 22 Marist.

CWPA PLAY
Brown posted a 2-4 mark in CWPA play, earning wins over GW (11-7) and St. Francis (12-3) while falling to then-No. 15 Harvard (7-6), then-No. 23 Bucknell (8-4), then-No. 6 Michigan (21-2), and then-No. 15 Princeton (8-4).

WEST COAST SWING
Brown went 4-4 during its eight-game, eight-day spring break trip to the state of California from Mar. 23-30. The Bears topped Chapman (8-3), Whittier (11-7), Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (14-9), and La Verne (15-9), while dropping decisions to Concordia (9-7), then-No. 12 Long Beach State (14-5), then-No. 25 Cal Baptist (9-7), and then-No. 17 UC San Diego (14-8).

20-WIN SEASONS
Brown has compiled 19 wins thus far in its 2019 season. The Bears have posted 20 or more wins in three of their last five seasons. Brown has totaled six 20-win seasons during 12^th-year head coach Felix Mercado's 11 previous seasons with the program.