CWPA Top-25 Poll
Courtney Fisher Invitational Schedule
Poughkeepsie, NY – After two weekends away from the pool, the Wagner women's water polo team is set to begin Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play this weekend at the Courtney Fisher Invitational against La Salle and St. Francis Brooklyn on the campus of Marist College.
Last Time Out
On February 5 and 6, the Seahawks secured four victories at the Bruno Classic in Cambridge, MA and Providence, RI to extend the team's winning streak to eight games. The first two victories of the weekend came against two nationally ranked opponents: Harvard and California Baptist. In the third game of the weekend, Wagner defeated conference foe Siena in a non-conference matchup, 29-6, the most goals in a single game in program history. The previous mark came back on April 13, 2019, when Wagner found the back of the net 27 times against MAAC opponent La Salle.
MAAC Honors
The Seahawks have claimed at least one MAAC weekly honor in all three weeks of competition so far this season. The latest time came on February 9 when senior
Kristina Bell and
Andrea Arias took home Defensive and Offensive Player of the week, respectively. For Bell, it was the second time this season she claimed Defensive Player of the Year honors as the Atascadero, CA native stopped 24 out of 45 shots faced and is sporting a .500 save percentage through the first 12 games of the young season.
Bell is the third goalkeeper in program history to claim multiple MAAC Defensive Player of the Week honors in the same season as former Seahawk Emily Riddle accomplished this feat in 2017 when she claimed five honors, including a three-peat on February 1, 7, and 15, 2017. Former Seahawk Katherine Campbell claimed back-to-back honors on February 1 and 7, 2018.
Andrea Arias claimed her first ever MAAC weekly honor after she found the back of the net nine times against Siena on day two of the Bruno Classic. The Madrid, Spain native set a program record for goals in a single game as she passed teammate senior
Sofia Diaz Alvarez as she tallied eight against the then #23 Indiana Hoosiers on January 25, 2019.
Team Effort
Through the first 12 games of the season, Wagner has scored 2020 goals, a program record through the first dozen games of the season. In 2018, the Green & White scored 150 goals through its first 12 games and scored 148 in the 2020 season. Through the first 12 games, Wagner is averaging 16.8 goals per contest.
The 10-2 mark by the Seahawks through the first dozen contests is the best in program history, the second-best start occurred in 2020 and 2015 when Wagner was 8-4 through the first 12 games.
The Green & White have had six MAAC weekly honors through the first three weeks of competition. Wagner swept the first week of honors as
Kristina Bell took home Defensive Player of the Week, junior
Abbey Simshauser took home Offensive Player of the Week and freshman
Carlota Alonso took home her first of back-to-back Rookie of the Week honors which was followed by Bell and
Andrea Arias taking home Defensive and Offensive Player of the Week honors, respectively.
Kristina Bell has 85 saves through 12 starts this season with 7.73 goals against and five steals while
Abbey Simshauser leads the team with 33 goals.
Sofia Diaz Alvarez checks in second with 30 goals while Arias has 29. Fifth year
Malia Josephson leads the team with 48 points while SImshauser checks in right behind her with 47. Diaz Alvarez has 46 points while sophomore
Mar Navarro has 44. Josephson also leads the team with 28 assists, Arias leads Wagner with 19 drawn exclusions while Simshauser checks in with 18.
Junior
Skye Nankervis sits atop the leader board with 25 steals and has a .838 sprint win percentage and holds a 31-6 record.
National Recognition
Wagner entered the 2022 season checking in at #23 in the College Water Polo Association (CWPA) Preseason Top-25. In the first three weeks of competition, the Green & White moved up nine spots, the most the program has moved up in the poll in the first three weeks.
The Seahawks moved up eight spots to its highest ever ranking #12, in 2018 when the team entered the season #20.
After checking in at #14 in the Week 3 Top-25, Wagner stayed #14 after not playing in week four. The Week 5 Top-25, released on Wednesday, February 23 had the Seahawks at #14 for the third consecutive week.
MAAC National Recognition
Wagner remains the highest nationally ranked team in the MAAC and the highest ranked east coast team in the Top-25. Along with Wagner, LIU checked in at #22 and Marist checked in #25 in the latest poll released by the CWPA.
Conference Success
The Seahawks enter 2022 MAAC play after opting out of the 2021 season sporting a 76-5 record since 2014. The 2014 season was the first of six consecutive MAAC Championships for Wagner. Prior to the run beginning in 2014, the Seahawks appeared in the MAAC Championship game 2011, 2012, and 2013 but fell to Iona all three times.
The Seahawks have appeared in 13 MAAC Championship games while claiming a conference leading nine titles. Prior to the 2021 season, either Wagner, Marist, or Iona has appeared in every championship since 2003 and those three schools are the only three to ever capture a title.
In 2016, 2017, and 2018 Wagner went unbeaten in conference play as the Seahawks went 12-0 in 2016 and 14-0 in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, Wagner finished the conference schedule with a 14-1 record and a 2-0 record in conference play as the season was cut short due to COVID-19.
The Seahawks last conference loss came in 2019 on a forfeit against Marist on April 15, 2019, in the regular season finale. Before that forfeit, Wagner's last MAAC defeat came 1,464 days before on April 11, 2015, against the Red Foxes.
About La Salle
The Explorers enter the contest with Wagner with a 3-6 overall record and will look to snap a two-game losing streak. La Salle is led by graduate student Kalista Hyham who leads the team with 25 goals, 51 shots, 33 points, and 14 drawn exclusions. The Huntington Beach, CA native has also won all three of her sprint attempts and was selected to the Preseason All-MAAC Team. The Explorers are coached by third year head coach Tom Hyham, the father of Kalista. Wagner is unbeaten against La Salle in nine games played.
About St. Francis Brooklyn
St. Francis Brooklyn enters this contest with Wagner with a 2-5 record. The Terriers' wins came against Gannon on January 30 at the Bucknell Invitational and against Mount St. Mary's on February 12 at the Princeton Invitational. The Terriers are coached by alumni Ilija Durectic who took over the program in 2021. Wagner is sporting a 35-2 lifetime record against their in-state rival.
What's Next
Following the trip to Poughkeepsie, NY, the Seahawks will ship to Cambridge, MA for the Harvard Invitational on March 5 and 6 where Wagner will battle California State East Bay, Indiana, and Brown.
