Courtney Fisher Invitational
Poughkeepsie, NY – The Wagner women's water polo team, now ranked No. 18 in the nation, travels to Poughkeepsie, NY this weekend to compete in the Courtney Fisher Invitational. They will look to begin a new win streak, after their previous seven-game run was ended on the last day of the Princeton Invitational against No. 17 Harvard. The Seahawks will only be competing in two games on the weekend, both on Saturday and against Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) foes. They will start with the hosting No. 24 Marist Red Foxes at 8:00 am, followed by an 11:45 am matchup with the La Salle Explorers. The Green & White's matchup with the Red Foxes will be available for streaming through the Red Fox Network.
SCHEDULE AT A GLANCE:
Saturday, February 22
8:00 AM – No. 18 Wagner vs. No. 24 Marist (
Live Stats |
Live Video)
11:45 AM – No. 18 Wagner vs. La Salle
LAST TIME OUT
The Seahawks traveled to Princeton, NJ to compete in the Princeton Invitational where they would attempt to keep a five game winning streak alive. On the first day, they would earn two victories, defeating No. 21 Princeton 11-9 and George Washington 17-10, to extend their winning streak to seven. On the final day, the Green & White met No. 18 Harvard for the third time on the season. Wagner fell in the first meeting, 11-10, in the Bruno Classic, before leveling the season series with a 12-8 victory over the Crimson in Lewisburg on February 8. On the last day of the Princeton Invitational, the Seahawks would drop the rubber match, falling 9-6, snapping their win streak, and handing Harvard a season series victory over the Seahawks.
ABOUT NO. 24 MARIST:
The Red Foxes will enter the Courtney Fisher Invitational with a 3-10 overall record on the season, splitting their last six games, after beginning the season on a seven game losing streak. Marist has faced 10 top-25 ranked opponents, dropping each matchup, while their three victories came against unranked Villanova, Santa Clara, and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
This will be the Red Foxes' first meeting with the Green & White after falling in the MAAC Championship 8-4, earning the Seahawks an automatic bid into the NCAA Championships.
Through 13 games, Marist has been led by Viktoria Orlova, who is pacing the team with 20 goals and 23 points, while Shinae Carrington's six assists ranks first for the Red Foxes. In goal, Marist has utilized all three of their goalies, but have relied most heavily on Marina Hyham, who has stopped 49 of 119 shots on the season, and earned MAAC Defensive Player of the Week once.
ABOUT LA SALLE:
The Explorers enter the weekend with a 5-7 mark on the season, having most recently dropped a Thursday decision at No. 19 Princeton, 12-3. Through 12 games, La Salle is averaging an impressive 10.20 goals per game, however, they have allowed an average of 11.25 goals against.
They are led by an offensive tandem of juniors Sarah DeFusco and Jillian DeLisle. DeFusco leads the Explorers in points and goals, with 52 and 40, respectively, while DeLisle is the main distributor, leading the team with 39 assists.
Defensively, the Explorers look to junior Karle Linden, reigning MAAC Defensive Player of the Week, who recorded nine steals and four blocks last weekend. In goal, La Salle has leaned on freshman Caitlin Valentine, she has recorded 68 saves, with a 39.8% save percentage on the season.
This will be the Explorers first meeting with the Seahawks, having dropped both meetings last season by a combined score of 53-10.
NEXT UP FOR THE SEAHAWKS:
Following their two-game weekend in Poughkeepsie, the Seahawks will be back in action on March 7 after a weekend off, travelling to Cambridge, MA to compete in the Harvard Invitational. They will compete in a total of three games, beginning with a double header on Saturday, March 7 against Connecticut College at 9:15 am, followed by Cal State East Bay at 4:45 pm. They will conclude the weekend on Sunday with their second of three season meetings with No. 23 Bucknell at 2:15 pm.
