Women’s Water Polo Defeats Iona, 14-6, Villanova, 12-5, on Opening Day

Saturday, January 25

Cambridge, MA / Harvard

11:00 AM

Brown University

Iona College

Women’s Water Polo Defeats Iona, 14-6, Villanova, 12-5, on Opening Day

1/25/2020 3:21:00 PM | Women's Water Polo

Iona Results Villanova Results

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Brown University women's water polo defeated Iona College, 14-6, and Villanova University, 12-5, on the opening day of its 2020 season at Harvard University's Blodgett Pool on Saturday.

The Bears (2-0) topped the Gaels (0-4) in their season opener in the morning before concluding the day with a victory over the Wildcats (0-2) in the afternoon at the Harvard Mini Invitational.

"It's certainly nice to start the season with two wins," Brown head coach Felix Mercado said. "We know we have a lot of work to do over the course of a long season, but this gives us some positive momentum heading into the Bruno Classic next weekend."

Freshman Katie Dvonch (Seal Beach, Calif.) led the Bears with six goals on the day while sophomores Dagmara Czajka (San Diego, Calif.) and Katie Klein (Lafayette, Calif.) scored five and four goals respectively. Junior Carissa Perez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) distributed a team-high nine assists alongside three goals.

Next, Brown hosts the Bruno Classic from Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 at the Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center as the Bears play in six games against Austin (Jan. 31, 5:00 p.m.), Siena (Jan. 31, 7:00 p.m.), LIU (Feb. 1, 9:15 a.m.), Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (Feb. 1, 7:15 p.m.), Whittier (Feb. 2, 8:00 a.m.), and No. 21 Wagner (Feb. 2, 12:40 p.m.).

Game 1 – Brown 14, Iona 6

Sophomore Dagmara Czajka and freshman Katie Dvonch each scored a hat trick as Brown defeated Iona, 14-6, on Saturday morning in its season opener.

Leading 3-2 in the second quarter, the Bears used an 8-1 run to pull ahead of the Gaels, 11-3, with 1:02 left in the third frame.

Czajka (San Diego, Calif.) tallied five points on three goals and two assists while Dvonch (Seal Beach, Calif.) finished with three goals and an assist.

Junior Carissa Perez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) registered six points on two goals and four assists alongside two steals, sophomore Katie Klein (Lafayette, Calif.) notched two goals and an assist, and senior Lexi Atwell (La Jolla, Calif.) scored two goals.

Freshmen Bryn Gioffredi (Laguna Beach, Calif.) and Claire Pisani (Redwood City, Calif.) each netted one goal, and fellow rookie Lily Weiser (Long Beach, Calif.) distributed three assists.

In the cage, senior goalkeeper Lauren Burns (Long Grove, Ill.) made five saves.

The Bears opened the game with a 2-0 lead behind goals from Klein and Gioffredi before an Iona goal made the score 2-1 after the first quarter.

A goal from Atwell pushed the margin to 3-1 before the Gaels trimmed the lead to 3-2. The Bears then began their 8-1 run with the final two goals of the third quarter as markers from Klein and Perez staked Brown to a 5-2 halftime lead.

Dvonch and Czajka netted the first two goals of the third quarter, making the score 7-2 and completing a 4-0 run. After a goal from Iona, the Bears used another 4-0 spurt to move ahead 11-3. During the run, Dvonch scored twice and Atwell and Pisani each added one goal apiece. The Bears remained ahead 11-4 through three quarters.

In the final stanza, Czajka scored twice and Perez tacked on the game's final goal as the Bears took the period 3-2.

Brown 14, Iona 6
Brown....................... 2…3…6…3…14
Iona........................... 1…1…2…2…6
Brown Goals: Czajka 3, Dvonch 3, Atwell 2, Klein 2, Perez 2, Gioffredi, Pisani.
Brown Saves: Burns 5.

Game 2 – Brown 12, Villanova 5

Freshman Katie Dvonch tallied her second hat trick of the day as Brown bested Villanova, 12-5, on Saturday afternoon in its second game of the day.

The Bears held leads of 4-1 at the end of the first quarter, 8-3 at halftime, and 11-4 through three quarters on their way to the win over the Wildcats.

Dvonch (Seal Beach, Calif.) paced the Bears with her three goals alongside two assists and two steals while sophomores Dagmara Czajka (San Diego, Calif.) and Katie Klein (Lafayette, Calif.) each netted two goals.

Junior Carissa Perez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) distributed five assists to go with one goal and two steals, and freshman Zoe King (Almaden, Calif.) totaled one goal, one assist, and five steals.

Junior Alli Schaum (San Rafael, Calif.) and freshmen Claire Pisani (Redwood City, Calif.) and Lily Weiser (Long Beach, Calif.) each scored a goal with Schaum and Weiser adding an assist apiece. Junior Lily Keck (La Jolla, Calif.) contributed four steals.

In the cage, sophomore goalkeeper Marley Presiado (Newport Beach, Calif.) stopped nine shots.

The Bears opened the game with a 4-0 lead behind goals from Dvonch, Perez, Schaum, and Klein and remained ahead 4-1 at the end of the first quarter.

Brown notched another four goals in the second stanza as two tallies from Czajka and one marker apiece from Weiser and Dvonch staked the Bears to an 8-3 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, goals from Perez, King, and Dvonch kept the Bears up 11-4. Klein then netted Brown's only tally of the fourth frame.

Brown 12, Villanova 5
Brown....................... 4…4…3…1…12
Villanova.................. 1…2…1…1…5
Brown Goals: Dvonch 3, Czajka 2, Klein 2, King, Perez, Pisani, Schaum, Weiser.
Brown Saves: Presiado 9.