Lewisburg, PA – The #20 Wagner (11-7) women's water polo team held off #25(T) Bucknell (6-5) by a score of 10-6 before defeating Gannon 19-6 to complete the weekend a perfect 4-0 at the Bucknell Invite. The Seahawks bested Princeton for the first time in program history while also beating Penn St, Behrend on the first day of competition.

Wagner 10 Bucknell 6 (Score Sheet)

The Seahawks controlled tempo and played sound defensively throughout the game. Wagner opened the contest on a 3-0 run which lasted into the second quarter. The Green & White opened scoring on a strike from reigning Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Offensive Player of the Year, Jess Lundgren (Queensland, Australia/ Mountain Creek) who was set-up by fellow senior Megan Rodriguez (Danville, CA/ San Ramon Valley).  Senior center Lily Doerfler (Annapolis, MD/ Broadneck) connected on a pass from Lundgren midway through the first period before Watson would tally a goal with under a minute left in the opening stanza to give the Seahawks a 3-0 advantage.

Bucknell would outscore the Seahawks 3-1 in the second quarter off a balanced attack, having three separate athletes found the back of the net.  The Green & White's lone second period goal would come off a counter attack from Lundgren as Wagner entered halftime holding a 4-3 lead.

Wagner took control of the game in the third quarter as they connected on four scoring opportunities while stifling the Bison's attack. Junior goalie Emily Riddle (Edmonton, Alberta/ Dr. E.P. Scarlett) registered six saves for the contest to hold down the defense for the Seahawks. Rodriguez rattled the cage for two goals in the third quarter as Lundgren and sophomore Lacey Anderson (Thousand Oaks, CA/ Westlake) each tallied once. Sophomore Elise Begg (Newbury Park, CA/ Newbury) was a key playmaker in the third period as she dished out three assists in the quarter alone.

Bucknell would outscore Wagner 3-2 in the final frame but the Seahawks lead was too much for the Bison to overcome. Rodriguez added two more smooth left-handed goals in the fourth quarter to bring her goal total to four for the game. The Seahawks would win by a final tally of 10-6.

Wagner 19 Gannon 6 (Score Sheet)

The Seahawks concluded play at the Bucknell Invite with an offensive explosion on their way to defeating Gannon 19-6. Lundgren rattled the cage for five goals in the opening quarter for the Seahawks with sophomore Kimberly Watson (Pointe-Claire, Quebec/ John Rennie) tallying once to bring their lead to 6-1 after the first period.

Lundgren struck home once again in the second quarter to bring her first half goal total to an eye-popping six. Rodriguez caught fire in the second finding the back of the net three times in the stanza alone. Doerfler fired in a strike during play in the period to give the Seahawks a comfortable 11-1 lead at halftime.

The Seahawks would outscore Gannon 8-5 in the second half.  Doerfler would tally on two offensive opportunities in the second half to bring her goal total for the game to three.  Freshman Abby Irving (Brentwood, B.C./ Canadian Sport School/ Stelly's) connected for three second half goals while Nicole Wallace (Harare, Zimbabwe/ Chisipite Senior School) and Natalie Kayton (Agoura, CA/ Agoura) each tallied once. Lundgren added a seventh goal in the second half to help bring the final score to 19-6 in favor of the Seahawks.

Riddle totaled five saves for Wagner while sophomore Anna Ward (Grayslake, IL/ Mundelein) recorded four blocks in net in the contest.

The Green & White are back in action March 5 at the Harvard Invite where they will opening the tournament with Indiana. 

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