Jessica Barby

NEW LONDON, Conn. -- The Washington & Jefferson College women's water polo team posted a 4-1 record this weekend at the CWPA Tournament hosted by Connecticut College. 

On Sunday, the Presidents knocked off Chatham University (15-7 W) and Connecticut College (8-7 W) after earning victories over Utica College (14-5 W) and Penn State-Behrend (16-0 W) on Saturday.  Grove City defeated W&J on Saturday evening for the Presidents' lone loss of the weekend by a 12-5 margin. 

Senior Jessica Barby (Sinking Spring, Pa./Wilson) led the W&J scoring over the weekend with 21 goals, including a career-high, eight-goal effort against Penn State-Behrend.  Junior Katie Wieber (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen) added a hat trick versus the Lions, while sophomore Kate Van Schaik (Arnold, Pa./St. Mary's) added two scores.  Every President who played in the match scored a goal, including freshman Leigh Anne Lewars (Kingston, Jamaica/Kent).  Senior Polly Ziegler (Palo Alto, Calif./Palo Alto) accumulated a career-high 23 saves in the shutout. 

Van Schaik poured in seven goals in the Utica win, while Barby and senior Erica Harpur (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) supplied four and three goals, respectively.  Ziegler was once again stellar in between the pipes with 11 saves. 

Senior Katie Silvestri (Kingsville, Md./McDonogh) led the Presidents in the loss to Grove City with four goals and four steals.  Wieber contributed the only other W&J goal.  W& J fell behind 5-1 at halftime and 8-2 after three periods.  Ziegler amassed 11 saves. 

Washington & Jefferson raced out to a 10-2 lead in the victory over Chatham which included a seven-goal second quarter.  Barby and Silvestri pumped in four goals, while Wieber and junior Caitlin Brown (Milford, Ohio/Milford) both netted a pair of goals.  Ziegler notched her third 11-save effort of the weekend. 

The Presidents held a one-goal edge on Connecticut College after the first and second periods, but used two goals in the third to build an 8-5 lead and W&J held on for the two-goal win despite playing a woman down due to a red card. 

Barby fired in a game-high five goals versus the Camels, while Harpur, Brown and Wieber all supplied one goal.  Ziegler finished the match with nine saves.

The victories raise W&J's record to 6-4 in CWPA Division III play as the Presidents clinched the No. 4 seed for the Division III Championship on April 23-24 at Utica College.

Release courtesy W&J Athletic Communications