Men’s Water Polo:

In their first match of four at the Princeton Invite against the No. 16 ranked team in the nation, the Colonials fell 12-7 to Santa Clara. The Broncos led the Colonials early in the match and never looked back. After holding the Colonials scoreless in the first quarter, the Broncos took a four goal lead into the half, with the score at 6-2. The Broncos would also outscore GW in the second half and hand the Colonials their first loss of their season.

On the back end of the Colonials Saturday doubleheader, GW was able to capitalize on early opportunities against Iona College. The Colonials scored on their first three possessions of the match and would outscore Iona 9-6 in the second half. Sophomore Bogdan Petkovic led the Colonials with five goals in the 16-8 win.

That success continued for the Colonials into Saturday’s matchup against Harvard. GW scored the only goal of the entire quarter, and took an eventual 5-2 lead into the break. After each team scored three goals apiece in the third, the Colonials held off a fourth quarter Crimson push, scoring three unanswered points to take the match 11-6. The win marked the first time the Colonials have beaten the Crimson since 2009, and improved the team’s record to 6-1, its best start in head coach Scott Reed’s 15-year tenure.

Women’s Volleyball:

The women’s volleyball team competed at the Carolina Classic this weekend, posting a record of 1-2. The Colonials struggled in their first match against North Carolina, the No. 18 ranked team in the country. The Tar Heels swept the Colonials, winning the match in three straight sets 14-25, 23-25, 10-25.

In their second matchup, the Colonials did to Albany what the Tar Heels did to them, making quick work of the Danes and dictating the match’s momentum. The Colonials won the match in straight sets 25-16, 25-23, 25-17.

Halfway through GW’s final match against James Madison, it appeared as though the Colonials would be returning home with an even 5-5 record. Instead, though, after winning the first two sets, the Colonials were unable to seal the victory, allowing the Dukes to creep back into the game. JMU would win the next two sets and steal the match from the Colonials, who also had a 8-4 lead at the midway point of the fifth set. The Dukes would eventually win the match 27-25, 25-23, 20-25, 24-26, 12-15.