As we head into Thanksgiving break, we are limited in the number practices we have left, but we certainly aren't letting the end get the best of us!  This past weekend we went to New Hampshire to volunteer at a 5k, for Girls on the Run.  While the event was canceled due to the weather, we were still able to have a great weekend! After team breakfast we climbed Mount Major, and although we had some first time hikers, were able to climb the mountain and get some awesome photos along the way!

The team on the top of Mount Major!

After the hike we were able to enjoy the resort before having an awesome sit-down Thanksgiving dinner!

We are looking forward to a round robin scrimmage the first weekend in December with Northeastern and MIT.  The next weekend we will be having another scrimmage with Boston College! So while we are all  looking forward to the holidays and semester winding down, we are geared up to finish the season strong!

Before we meet all of our potential new teammates at Splash on September 8th from 12-2pm, lets check in on some of our recent grads and see what they are up to!

Lindsey Stevens is living a new apartment with her new 10 year old kitty, in Brighton working as an EMT while she gears up for grad school.  Through her crazy hours she always manages to reach out to old (although it doesn't seem like it ) teammates and keep in touch.  She is loving not having the stress of midterms and finals but she does miss having some really awesome academic conversations that she got during her time at BU.  We miss you mucho but love to hear how well you are doing!

Next up is Camilla Stejskal! She is also living in the Boston area and is currently working as a lab manager and researcher with the BU Department of Chemistry but is looking for a position in research or biotech before continuing her studies! The focus of her work is understanding protein function using biochemical and molecular biology laboratory practices.  She is a big believer that biochemical research access problematic corners of science such as sustainable development, industrial chemical production and healthcare in a fascinating and decisive way! She appreciated the base knowledge and networks she has made at BU and how she has been able to use and expand them in her field.  She's missing the water polo community very much, and claims that joining a new sport was one of her fondest memories from BU, aside from earning her degree! Keep killing it girl, we are proud!

Varsha Srivastava has been living it up this summer and we are all jealous she got to spend time in New York City with another alumni, Roslyn Harold, and celebrate Roslyns birthday together since she moved to Texas two years ago! She is headed back the Bay area for a little bit before she heads off to Barcelona!! She will be studying abroad there in the fall.  Although she still has school left, she misses practicing with the team and getting a regular work out in! Have lots of fun in Spain and please send photos!

This weekend our Terriers made the long trek to Middlebury University for the first tournament of the season. We played two games on Saturday and two games on Sunday. With a lot of players participating in their first game of water polo it was a great weekend for learning and experiencing new things.

Our first game for the weekend was against a strong Wesleyan team. Our defense struggled with a fast Wesleyan offense in the first half of the game. However, by the second half our defense started to come together and we were able to more effectively shut down their offense. Unfortunately, it came a little too late and the Terriers lost 10-7.

Our second game of the weekend took place Saturday evening against the tournament host’s, Middlebury College. Middlebury came out quick ready to defend their home turf however our defense was ready for them as well. Our offense took charge in this game quickly driving up the score and we were victorious 10- 8. Gaby Grund worked especially hard as she made her debut as a Terrier in set and scored multiple goals. This game was also a great learning experience as all of our new players were able to play and get their feet wet so to speak.

Sunday morning dawned a new day for the BU Terriers and the morning started off quick with a tough game against Dartmouth. The Dartmouth girls were fast and played hard and while BU lost 14-3, the team showed a lot of stamina and played at 100% for the entire game. Special props to Camila Stejskal for beating the Dartmouth sprinter on a swim off.

We finished our tournament Sunday afternoon with a fun game against UMass. (Despite the long weekend we were able keep great spirits and strong swimming! BU came out ahead and won 8 to 5.

Overall the Terriers had a great weekend and are looking forward to the Alumni tournament this weekend and our next CWPA tournament the weekend of April 7^th.

On Sunday October 15th, the team participated in their first scrimmage of the off-season with local rival Boston College at our home pool. For many new members this was their first taste of a real water polo game. Special shout out to our new members Andi Kokkinos, Caitlin Yam, Carly Langan, Liz Harmison, Ezgi Nur Eyigor, Gaby Grund and Laura Tsang for participating in their first game as Terriers! Ultimately the team lost the scrimmage 15-19 after four quarters of regulation play. Great effort was demonstrated by all players during the scrimmage, especially returning goalie Varsha Srivastava, as she blocked several one on nobody shots with ease. The team was able to walk away with good spirits and specific things  that coach Joanna Chan plans to focus on in the rest of the semester. 

This weekend the girls plan to support the BU Men's Water Polo team as they host championships @ BU. The men's team enters the championship tournament as the #1 seed and a fantastic shot to win the New England Division. Good luck boys! We will be cheering you on the entire way.

Check out the schedule for the tournament here.

It's official! The 6th annual Austin Brashears Memorial Alumni Tournament will be held at Boston University's Fitness and Recreation Center on Saturday March 17th. Games will start at 1 p.m. Stay tuned for more information about the schedule for the event and information on the reception following the games.

Click here to see a video recap of the event last year!

In addition, each year at the tournament both the men's and women's teams sell raffle tickets to raise money for the Austin Brashears Scholarship. Various gifts from local vendors have been a part of the raffle in the past. If you know of anyone who would be willing to donate any items to the raffle contact Maddie Thomas at methomas@bu.edu.

We look forward to seeing you on March 17th!

As the summer has officially winded down our ladies have been busy recruiting new members and volunteering in the community.

Back on September 9th the returning members got super spirited and helped recruit new Terriers with their flashy signs and stylish swim suit apparel. They must of done a great job as our team has a seen huge growth in size in the first few weeks!

In addition to being spirited, on September 17th our entire team, new and old members, got together super early and helped volunteer at the annual Hub on Wheels bike race that happens throughout the entire city of Boston. The girls passed out fruit, water and apple juice to the racers while also being positive reinforcement for the riders as they continued on the course.

In the next coming weeks our team hopes to continue to hone our craft of water polo and get our butts in shape to eventually participate in some scrimmages. Stay tuned for more information!

The BU Women's Water Polo Club is excited to start a new year together in the upcoming weeks. With 14 players confirmed to return, the team plans to welcome talent old & new to the pool. We are also excited to welcome back Joanna Chan, head coach for her third season with the team.

Are you returning?

Check out the blog updates including our 2017 coaching staff, E-Board, roster updates, and most importantly - our semester schedule. Our first optional practice for all returning players will be Wednesday, September 6 at 9pm. Stop by to reunite with friends & get back in the pool. Our first official practice will be on Monday, September 11th at 8pm - new players meeting & our first workout with Joanna.

Are you a new player looking to join?

Come visit our table at Splash on Nickerson Field on Saturday, September 9th at 1pm. After you signup, we will email you updates, including a reminder about our new player meeting: FitRec Pool Classroom, September 11th at 8pm. Following the meeting will be the chance to join the team in the water. Players of all skill levels are welcome. A swimming background is recommended.

For more info, email bugirlswaterpolo@gmail.com. 

Furthermore, we are excited to share what our 2017 Alumni has been up to since graduation...

We are so proud of our graduates for all their accomplishments & new adventures. We hope to see them at our 2018 Alumni Tournament!

What have our graduates done for Summer 2017?

Roslyn Harrold

Psychology Major, Graduated December 2016

Roslyn graduated with her degree after 5 semesters at BU, which is unheard of (graduating in 8 is usually hard enough). She is currently working at a medical school in Dallas, Texas, studying depression across the lifespan. Her efforts are currently focused on a longitudinal study that’s seeking to improve diagnoses and treatment outcomes for mood disorders through the use of neural- and bio-markers. This summer she went camping with her friend Ellen she met at BU at Big Bend National Park - where the desert floor reached 150 degrees during her stay! She hiked the Chisos Mountains and crossed into Mexico - making friends with a Mexican cattle rancher. Although she has not been involved in polo since she graduated, she has been lap swimming to stay in shape.

Stay in contact with Roslyn & ask her where this photo was taken!

Leslie Fung

Public Health Major, Graduated May 2017

Leslie has decided to pursue nursing, eventually becoming a midwife. She began working towards her goal this summer, taking some related courses including microbiology. To earn some extra cash and hopefully some free delicious pastries, she started working part-time at Flour Bakery (the team can't wait to go visit). Additionally she has been working with Sargent College's Academic Counselor on a project to improve Sargent Advising, studied for & took the GRE, and started training for her practicum at Boston Medical Center's Psychiatry Department. If you aren't impressed yet, she also managed to fit in some traveling - going to NYC with her boyfriend, visiting her family back home in San Francisco, and is currently vacationing in Maui. In the fall she will return to BU to earn her Masters in Public Health, so hopefully we see her around the pool at least a few times. What a productive summer for Leslie!

Stay in contact with Leslie & ask her where this photo was taken!

Ali Nichols 

Marketing Major, Graduated May 2017

After graduating, Ali traveled for about two months. Her trips included Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Frankfurt, Brussels, Amsterdam, and Mallorca. She is currently spending a few weeks at home in Hawaii, and will be moving to LA at the end of this month. Although she is not sure which company she will be working with, she is in the final round interviews with some wonderful options. Once in the area and settled in, she plans to look for a polo team to join. We will sure miss Ali's polo skills, bright smile, (& dabs) this year.

Stay in contact with Ali & ask her where this photo was taken!

Steph Borgstein 

Public Health Major, Graduated May 2017

*2017 BUWWP Vice President

Steph has traveled quite a lot since earning her degree. After visiting her family in the Netherlands, she spent two weeks in California - visiting LA, San Francisco, and Yosemite National Park (where she went backpacking for four days). She is currently working at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as a research assistant in the Department of Oncologic Pathology. No matter where she ends up, she hopes to find a new polo team to call home.

Stay in contact with Steph & ask her where this photo was taken!

Ashley Reischman 

Mechanical Engineering  Major, Graduated May 2017

*2017 BUWWP Captain

To celebrate her graduation, Ashley's family went on a trip to Africa, visiting South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. She currently works as a field engineer at Baylo in Woburn, MA, designing software that navigates autonomous trucks in warehouses. We are also excited to share that Ashley will be volunteer COACHING for the team. Ashley's skills have carried the team through many tough tournaments, and we are excited for her to be joining us once a week at practice.

Stay in contact with Ashley & ask her where this photo was taken!

Allison "Durks" Durkan

Computer Engineering Major, Graduated May 2017

*2017 BUWWP President & Captain

Since the "fancy, expensive piece of paper," Durks has been doing what we all expected - taking the world by storm (and working at Microsoft - in case you somehow missed that over the last year). Before starting her job as a software engineer, she drove cross-country with her older sister. In addition to helping her sister move to Seattle, she was able to visit two players on her route - Madie (in Chicago) & Mary (in St. Paul). This fall she will be joining Boston Metro Water Polo. Currently, the water polo team is trying to figure out how to function without this badass.

Stay in Contact with Durks & ask her where this photo was taken!

Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook for more.

This article was written by Maddie Thomas, Co-President BUWWP, methomas@bu.edu

Hello water polo lovers, family, friends, and alums!

Happy New Year! Curious about some fun updates on your favorite group of terriers? Check out our fall newsletter by clicking this link: buwwp_fall2016newsletter

We also have a newly updated tournament schedule. If you're in the neighborhood, come watch us play!

Tournament Dates 2017:

o February 25-26 at Wesleyan University
o April 8-9 at Boston University
o April 22-23 Championship at Williams College
*Austin Brashears Memorial Alumni Tournament will be on March 25th, at Boston University’s Fitrec*

We are thankful to be entering the competitive season with such strong support from you all. Super excited to get back in the pool and play some polo!

Love,

BU Women's Water Polo

What’s up BU and all interested in reading about Women’s Water Polo!

Life under the water has been great, and getting to know our 15 new members has been awesome. We total to 33 amazing young women and we definitely will make a huge splash once the Spring season begins. This is not only because we have our cannonballs mastered, but because Splash was super successful…as if all the fantastic new recruits were not indicative of this fact. They have taken to the water, sport, and team naturally, and the past two weeks have been incredibly fun and rewarding for both new and old fishies. Teaching and team development has also been bolstered thanks to the coaching efforts of Adrienne Ingalla and Sean Hughes, who grace us with their immense polo knowledge. Through plenty of leg/swim sets as well as some good old fashioned scrimmaging, the girls are shaping up well in these early weeks.

Last weekend we supported Hub On Wheels, and helped hand out refreshments to the cyclists participating in the event. Cleaning up afterwards was great for team bonding, and we did our part to help fund raise for the year.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Sunday evening and we'll be keeping you all posted on the goings-on at BUWWP!

Hello Terrier Nation!

The Fall semester is fast approaching and we are ready to kick-off a new school year. Interested in joining a sport? Try Women's Water Polo! We are excited to welcome all newcomers regardless of experience level. If you wanna check us out here are some events to lookout for:

SPLASH: 

Saturday, September 10th 12:00pm-2:00pm at BU's Nickerson Field. Representatives from most of BU's clubs and organizations will be tabling and promoting their teams

NEW PLAYER MEETING:

Monday, September 12th 8:00-9:00pm at Fitrec's pool classroom (located behind the hot tub). We will be having our first practice after the meeting!

Check us out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for more updates! Or email us at bugirlswaterpolo@gmail.com!

This past weekend the Terriers drove up to Middlebury for their second league tournament. The Terriers played three games on Saturday and one game on Sunday. With their seed for the championship tournament on the line the girls left everything in the pool and walked away with their heads held high after four gutsy performances.

The first game of the tournament saw BU matched up against UMASS Amherst. UMASS Amherst was quick and looked to counter but BU's defense proved strong and was able to shut down the counter. Balanced with a strong offensive attack the Terriers pulled out a win 10-2.

The second game of the tournament matched BU vs. Middlebury. Middlebury came out of the whistle quick, ready to play. The Terriers were able to keep up defensively but struggled offensively in the beginning of the game. BU continued to play tough defense and hung around keeping the score 3-2 Middlebury at half time. In the second half of the game BU was able to get things going offensively and ultimately led the game 6-4 with 3:00 remaining in regulation. Unfortunately Middlebury's offense was too much for the Terriers to handle and the Panthers were able to force overtime and win the game 9-6.

The final game on Saturday featured a tough match up between BU and cross-town rival BC. Knowing that BC is always a tough opponent the girls came out strong both offensively and defensively. BC began to come back in the fourth quarter but BU held strong defensively and walked away from the pool with a 6-4 win.

On Sunday the Terriers returned to the pool to face Dartmouth. This was the first match up of the season for BU against Dartmouth. The Terriers were able to play a strong press defense and shut down Dartmouth's offense. Matched with BU's good passing and movement on offense the Terriers finished the tournament with a 10-2 victory.

The Terriers will return to the pool next weekend at BU for the championship tournament. As the number 2 seed the BU will be battling for its first New England division championship and a trip to Nationals. We hope to see you there cheering us on!

The Cheetahs are excited to be back in the pool and working hard again in preparation for their upcoming league tournaments! This season, BU returns to the New England Division alongside Boston College, Middlebury, Dartmouth, UMass, Northeastern, and Williams. The club is really looking forward to taking advantage of this challenging opportunity. The girls will be playing in 2 league tournaments at Middlebury College in Vermont, followed by the BU-hosted championship tournament in April 16 and 17th.

Senior captains Cat Xenakis and Katy Cooke are excited about the upcoming season, with the team committed to making this season one of the best in club history. With the support and dedication of coaches Joanna Chan and Sean Hughes, the girls expect to go into their first tournament confident and equipped to tackle any challenge.

In Other News...

This past weekend, the team volunteered at the American Lung Association’s Fight for Air Climb where they cheered on firefighters from all over Massachusetts as they climbed up the 41 stories of One Boston Place. Community engagement has always been a great part of this team’s culture, and we are incredibly thankful to have been given the opportunity to participate in this event.

To find our schedule of games, please visit:

http://www.collegiatewaterpolo.org/club/Schedules/womensclub/2016/2016WomenNewEnglandDivisionSchedule

This Saturday, January 30, the lady terriers will be heading over to Harvard University for a mini invitational among high level Division 1 teams. The team was invited to play 3 games with an immense learning opportunity!

Don't miss your chance to see some GREAT water polo and cheer on your fellow Terriers!

Schedule:

9am Iona vs. BU

11:30am Brown vs. BU

2pm BU vs. Villanova

See you there!

Wanna know what we were up to all fall and what's in store for the spring?

Check out our newsletter for news and important dates!

Fall 2015 WaPo Newsletter

This past spring, Boston University Women’s water polo team had its first undefeated season, first league championship victory, it’s first earned trip to nationals, and received the honor of Club Sports Team of the Year. It was a fantastic season for everyone involved and was an important step for our team to become more competitive in an area of the country where water polo isn’t a prominent sport. However, a few of our key players were abroad for this historic season. And while they missed some of the excitement state side, they decided that just because they were studying abroad didn’t mean that they had to miss the fun of playing water polo. Allison Durkan and Ashley Reischman, both sophomores at the time, joined a men’s water polo team in Madrid, Spain at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and had an exciting season of their own.

[Allison Durkan, current junior in Computer Engineering]

As a freshman at BU, I joined the women’s water polo team with the hope of meeting a motivated group of young women that would inspire and encourage me to learn how to play a fun and exciting new sport. Not only did the team support me in the pool, but also the girls helped me with other parts of my life. I fell in love with the sport that year. During spring of 2015, my sophomore year, I studied abroad in Madrid, Spain. Studying in Madrid had been a dream of mine since the beginning of high school and was one of the reasons I chose to come to BU. So when I was accepted to the program, I was over the moon. However, studying abroad in the spring would mean that I would have to miss the tournament season for water polo. While in Madrid, the staff talked all the time about getting out of our BU bubble of friends, immersing ourselves in the culture and making Spanish friends. With this in mind, I decided to find a water polo team. I reached out to a few programs around the city, and tried out a few teams before I found one that clicked. There was a men’s recreational team at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, where I was taking classes, that I decided to join and it was without a doubt the best part of my abroad experience.

Practices were four nights out of the week, but like every other part of Spanish culture, the team was relaxed and it was not a big deal if you missed practice. At first when we joined, the guys were tentative with their defense and didn’t pass to us, probably because they weren’t used to playing with some fierce cheetahs. However, once we started pushing them around and kicking their butts, they loosened up and we began to actually be able to play water polo together as a team without restraint.

Everything about Spain was different than the USA, but the way they played water polo was one of the biggest differences. What would have been an ejection in our league was ignored and shooting from the top happened more than set shots. At practice, we would have shooting competitions and play with giant exercise balls. On the weekends, we would meet up for tapas and cervezas and the guys would laugh and help us with our Spanish. We would chat about politics and the differences between our cultures. That group of young men changed my view of Spaniards, helped expand my mind and made my passion for the sport grow more than I ever thought it could. Joining that team was the best decision I have ever made and I would not give up those memories for anything.

[Ashley Reischman, current junior in Mechanical Engineering]

I started playing water polo my freshman year of high school as an off-season sport to competitive swimming. I had never played a sport that required such a wide variety of individual skills but also was extremely dependent on teamwork; I loved how important each player was and how much freedom the rules granted you to make something happen. After the first year with my high school team, I went on to play in major national tournaments where I learned so much about the sport by playing against the top teams across the nation. Although losing by a large margin of points in a game is no fun for anyone, playing these teams that were light years ahead of my own skill taught me new tricks and taught me how to play well when it’s seemingly pointless to try. Water polo has been a big part of my life since I was fourteen, and I was excited to find out that I could continue to play in college at BU without the extra pressure of being in a D1 team.

When I got my acceptance letter for the study abroad program in Madrid, I was ready to kiss water polo good-bye for a semester and I was anticipating losing a lot of my ability to play over the five months that I would be in Europe. But when I got to Europe, I heard that my teammate, Allison Durkan, was looking around for a chance to play in Spain and I tagged along with her to check out the team at the university we were attending. After the first practice with only four other players that showed up because it was what they called “advanced day” (a practice where they worked on developing skills rather than scrimmaging), it became clear to me that water polo in Spain was going to be very different from water polo in America. Pretty much all of the practices consisted of Allison and I floating around in the pool, pretending like we understood what the coach was saying to us, and then making things up as the practice proceeded. During the scrimmages, we had to learn how to play a lot rougher because a very small number of the rules were actually followed. Games were more about getting to play for the longest amount of time with the fewest interruptions. The coach even allowed us to referee a game because he wanted to play and he thought we knew the rules better than anyone else in the pool. Being on that team was by far the best part of my experience abroad. It fueled my desire to learn Spanish more than anything else, it kept me active, and it taught me so much about what it’s like to be a young adult in Spain. Those friendships and the memories of laughing as we struggled to understand each other are the moments that made my semester in Spain my best semester at BU.

After a successful Splash the Terriers are excited to meet all the new players. Remember if you signed up at Splash that we will be having our beginning of the year meeting on Wednesday 9/9 at 7:30 pm, in the pool classroom. If you weren't able to make it to Splash but are interested in water polo feel free to join us too! Immediately following the meeting we will be jumping in the water for our first official practice of the year. Can't wait to meet all the new Terriers.

Make sure to check us out at Splash, September 5th at 12 p.m on Nickerson field! In addition to Splash, we will be holding our beginning of the year informational meeting on September 9th at 7:30 p.m in the pool classroom on the lower level of Fit Rec . Following the meeting we will have our first practice with returning and new players so make sure to bring your suit to the meeting. As always if you have any questions email us at bugirlswaterpolo@gmail.com.

After coming off a 2015 North Atlantic League Championship and a trip to Nationals, the Terriers return to Boston this fall more motivated than ever. With the summer coming to a close, everyone is eager to hop back in the water, some in better shape than others. We are especially excited about the start of the season because with a new year always comes a new bunch of cheetahs!

If you have any interest in water polo make sure to stop by and chat with us at Splash on 9/5 at 12 pm on Nickerson field. No previous experience is required, however it is helpful that you know how to swim, even though that hasn't stopped previous players before!

To read more about our team you can also check out our Facebook page or our Twitter. If you are also looking for a player's perspective about the team you can email us with specific questions at bugirlswaterpolo@gmail.com. We hope to see lots of new faces at Splash!

BU Women's Water Polo rounded off our final scrimmage of the semester with a solid win! In previous contests, the Cheetahs had barely lost to Northeastern, losing 9-10 both times. Finishing off our season with a handy defeat was fantastic.

The game started well with the lady Terriers scoring 3 goals in the first few minutes. Northeastern was able to catch up and the first quarter ended at 3-3 tie. The Terriers regained momentum in the second quarter and were able to finish the half strong, leading by a score of 7-4.

During halftime Lia, our assistant coach, reminded us that it would be our last game with Phoebe Katelaris (our Australian exchange student) and our Spring 2015 study abroad students (Olivia Wade, Christie Tang, Ashley Reischman, and Allison Durkan). With the ignition lit, the Terriers ran up the score. Both new and old players made major contributions to the goal-fetching. A strong defense, lead by Varsha Srivastava and Shireen Kheradpey in goal, blocked and stole the ball frequently, which fed out a strong counter attack. In the end it was a 16-6 BU win! A special shout out goes out to all the new players who really stepped up despite having been playing water polo for only three months!

Thanks to BU Men's Water Polo members who helped officiate the game and live-tweeted. Next semester looks to be a fun and exciting season! In the spring, the Cheetahs will be playing in two league tournaments and one championship tournament in the hopes of qualifying for Nationals! Stay tuned for updates on our spring schedule and ways you can help support the team!

Today's scrimmage was our first win of the semester! We beat Boston College 13-8 in a friendly scrimmage. Despite the unfortunate weather, we had a few vocal fans come out to support us.

Quite a few players managed to score this afternoon. Maeve O'Connor scored an impressive four goals off of drives and outside shots. Hat tricks by Elena Quijano and Shireen Kheradpey pushed our team ahead. Tessa Chapman, Olivia Wade, and Kelia Cowan topped off BU's goal count. Our team held a strong against BC's aggressive attacks. Freshman goalie Varsha Srivastava ran a tight defense and made a number of incredible saves.

On November 16, we are scrimmaging Northeastern University Women's Water Polo Team. Hope to see you there!

Thank you, Scott Flickinger (our awesome club advisor), for taking the photo!

Last Sunday the girls held their second round robin tournament with Northeastern and Boston College. The Terriers played a hard game against Northeastern, but unfortunately lost by one point (10-9). Despite this loss, the team showed some serious improvements during the game. A few girls deserve some special recognition: Kelia Cowan played amazing defense and offense throughout the night, scoring in each game and making fantastic defensive saves. Phoebe Katelaris also played an incredible two games. She scored at least twice in each game and was often times beating everyone down the pool to score a few points off fast breaks. Camilla Stejskal had a break through game as her speed allowed her to make several defensive saves.

BU and BC faced off in the second game, and although the Terriers played another great game, tiredness got the best of us and we lost to BC 7-5. We saw some more great plays during this game including several great shot blocks by our goalie Varsha Srivastava, and Shireen Kheradpey demonstrated extreme ball handling skills as she repeatedly stole the ball from BC. All in all, it was a great night for the Cheetahs.

For the remainder of the preseason, the Cheetahs will work more on endurance training and focus on ball handling skills. This upcoming Sunday (November 2), we will scrimmage BC again so we can practice playing in a game-like scenario. This helps us learn our weaknesses so we can fix them before the competitive season rolls around. Come out to support us! And if you can't make it, not to worry; we will make another blog post next week.

The Cheetahs have been very busy these past few weeks. Regular practices have continued as part of preseason training. The Cheetahs also hosted a round-robin tournament with Boston College and Northeastern University on Sunday, Sept. 28th at FitRec. Their record stood 1-1 at the end of the day, as they fell 10-9 to Northeastern, but through hard work and mental strength they were able to #BeatBC 6-5! For many girls on the team it was their first time playing in a water polo game, and everyone did a fantastic job. A special shout out to our freshman goalie Varsha Srivastava who blocked several difficult shots.

On Oct. 4th, the Cheetahs traveled to Worcester, MA, to volunteer and run in the Megan Lally Memorial 5K. The girls helped direct and cheer runners on throughout the race. It was also one of the first bonding activities they had out of the pool. A special thanks to Tessa Chapman, Katy Cooke, and Steph Borgestein who fundraised $175 and ran the 5K. Here's a picture of the team in Worcester:

And finally, a big thank you to all of the fans who came out  to support us during our scrimmage and to those of you who cheered us on via Facebook and Twitter. We really appreciate it! Stay tuned for more updates as the girls look forward to another preseason scrimmage on 10/26.

The summer is coming to an end and we're finally making our way back to BU!

The team had a great season last year complete with great new players, challenging tournaments, and a second place finish in the Collegiate Water Polo Association's North Atlantic League. With school approaching quickly, the Cheetahs are excited to meet new players and begin training in September!

To any players interested in our team: please keep checking our blog for new information. We'll be posting more frequently as the school year starts. You can also keep up with us on Facebook and Twitter. We welcome players of all skill levels!

If you have any questions, please feel free to email bugirlswaterpolo@gmail.com.

We can't wait to meet you!

The fall season is officially underway and the team is getting back into competition shape! We will be having our first interscholastic scrimmage against Boston College this coming Sunday (10/20) at 3 pm at FitRec! Please come out and support your favorite water polo team!

REMINDER: Our first meeting/practice of the season is TOMORROW in FitRec room 221 at 8PM! Please bring a suit, cap and goggles, we will be practicing at 9PM. Stop by if you have any interest in the team; we are always looking for new players!

Thank you to everyone who was able to join us at the Boston University Club Sports Expo! We hope you learned all about our team and are excited about joining us in the fall! Our first informational meeting and practice will be held on Wednesday September, 11 at 8 PM in class room 221 in FitRec. We will be getting into the pool at 9 so make sure you come prepared with a swim suit (one-piece), cap and goggles!
We can't wait to meet everyone!

As the summer is winding down, BU women's water polo can't wait to get back into the water! For all those interested in joining our team, please come visit us at the Club Sports Expo on September 2 at noon at FitRec (915 Commonwealth Ave).
We welcome players of all skill sets, so come see what we are all about!

We hope every one is enjoying a nice summer break and getting much needed rest before classes and the water polo season start again!

The Cheetahs are looking forward to welcoming new players this coming season from the Class of 2017! With a new year brings many opportunities for the BU Water Polo teams and we can’t wait to get back in the pool in September!

To all new and interested players (of all skill types) please watch out for updates on the schedule and our first introductory meeting in September.  All information will be posted on our blog and facebook page.  Please do not hesitate to email bugirlswaterpolo@gmail.com with any questions.  We can’t wait to meet you all in September and welcome you to the Cheetah Zone!

The Cheetahs returned from Nationals in Minneapolis, MN, after a long weekend full of water polo and cold weather. We played three hard games against very strong teams. We are very happy with all that we have accomplished this year, especially being the first BU Water Polo team to make it to the Collegiate Water Polo Association's National Championship!

The first game took place Friday morning against University of Central Florida. The Cheetahs were overcome by a score of 21-4, but the girls carried their heads high, happy to have the chance to compete at Nationals.

After losing their first game, the girls were excited to get in and play Texas A&M. The Cheetahs fought hard but couldn’t seem to stop Texas's aggressive offense, and fell to the Aggies 16-3. After this hard loss the Terriers were set to get back into the pool at 9:50pm Saturday night. The girls spent all day Saturday studying to get ready their final exams upon returning to Boston.

Despite the late game time, the team was ready to get in and play hard against the University of California Santa Barbara. The Terriers fought hard in their best game of the tournament. Goalie Bridget Eastes played her best game of the season with some key blocks! The Terriers lost 13-3 but coaches Liz Lacy and Emily Millard-Pace were happy with the game.

With no scheduled games for Sunday, the team watched the Championship game between UCF and UC Davis. An intense battle to the end, UC Davis came out on top winning their second national championship in a row! The Cheetahs then headed out to the Mall of America to shop and relax a little before the trip back to Boston.

Nationals closed out a season full of traveling, nail biting games and team bonding for the Cheetahs. We are so happy with how far we have come as a team and cannot wait to see what the fall has to bring us. A BIG thank you to everyone who has helped and supported our team throughout this exhausting but successful year!

ALOHA! It's been a week since the team's trip to Oahu, Hawaii and we're not happy about being back in the cold. We had a blast swimming in the clear ocean and tanning (or burning) under the warm sun. But the team also worked hard to prepare for the upcoming tournament and championship game in April. We did a mixture of exercises, mixing both land and water workouts: hiking up Koko head (1048 steps!), scrimmaging at different pools and running relays on the beach. Thank you to Le Jardin Academy, Kamehameha School, Iolani School and Mililani High School for allowing us to scrimmage with them in their amazing outdoor pools. Since both our team and the opposing teams split into the more advanced group and the less advanced group, everyone had a lot of time in the water and learned much more and showed a vast improvement. The girls learned a lot from the trip, not only about water polo, but also about each other. The cheetahs are ready to come out strong for their next games!

Here's the link to our more detailed itinerary: http://www.bu.edu/fitrec/club/news.shtml#WomenWaterPolo

A big mahalo to the Cowan and Kheradpey families for providing the cheetahs with food, housing and transportation for the whole week!

The women's water polo team just won their first tournament in Maine, hosted by Bates College! GO CHEETAHS!!! This tournament and the next tournament at the beginning of April will count towards the championship game. On Sat. March 2, the girls first went up against Bowdoin College, with 14-8, then went up against Yale University. Yale beat the girls last year in the New England Division and won first place, but the cheetahs fought strong and hard and won a score of 11-7. The last game of that day was against Bates College with 10-3. The next day, the girls went up against MIT and won with a score of 7-3.

The following weekend, the girls are going to travel to Hawaii for spring break! Big thanks in advance to the Cowan and Kheradpey family for their generosity in providing us with food, housing and transportation.

The girls have less than a month until their next tournament in Maine again, held at Bowdoin College. Even though most of the girls haven't learned water polo until the beginning of the school year, they have shown definite improvement: they communicated in the water, had spectacular defense and shots, and thought as a team. The cheetahs are extremely proud of one another. Keep it up!

The cheetahs just came back from their St. Francis Tournament. The first day we competed with Iona College who won 18-2. (Don't worry cheetahs, we'll do better next time!) The next day, we went up against Cornell University (11-10) and NYACK. NYACK didn't have enough teammates so a couple of our teammates played for their team.

Even though this was a "friendly" tournament and our real tournament doesn't start until March 2 held in Bates College, Maine, many of the players learned a lot from these games. We have 5 more practices before we head off to Maine. Get excited girls!

The Cheetahs are heading over to Harvard University tomorrow at 5:15 for a scrimmage against Iona's College. Come support us at Harvard's Blodgett Pool! Hope to see you there!

We have a scrimmage against BC tomorrow at 6pm at the FitRec. Please come and support us!

Phase 1: endure the coaches' grueling swim sets and transform ourselves into olympic-like swimmers

Here are this semester's event dates that we have planned thus far:

Feb 2: Game vs. Iona at 5:15
Feb 16-17: St. Francis Invitational, Brooklyn heights, NY
March 2-3: Bates tournament
March 9-17: Hawaiiii!!
April 6-7:Bowdoin Tournament
April 20-21: Yale Tournament- Champs

Please come to support the cheetahs!

The cheetahs enjoyed their winter break, but now it's time to get back into the pool and get hyped up for the upcoming scrimmages:

Feb. 2-3: vs. NYAC
Feb. 16-17: at St. Francis
Mar. 2-3: Bates Tournament
Mar. 9-17: HAWAII

Please come and support us against our scrimmage against Northeastern University today at the FitRec at 7pm! Also a reminder that the fundraiser is next week Friday! Hope to see you then!

Please present this flier and Cane's will donate $1 for every combo you purchase!

Come to Raising Cane's (949 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02215) to support the BU Women’s Water Polo team on Friday, November 16th from 12pm-12am. One dollar from every combo ordered goes to our team. Make sure to mention the Women’s Water Polo team and present the flyer when ordering and invite your friends! The flyer will be posted soon (and also on our facebook wall and event wall) so that you can print it out.

The cheetahs would like to wish everyone a happy Halloween! Can you guess what each of us are dressed up as? Hint: We're all Disney characters.

The BU Cheetahs lost to Boston College on Sunday with a score of 7-10. It's okay girls! We'll get them next time 🙂

Thank you to those who came to our table and signed up during SPLASH! Please remember to come to our first meeting to get to know the team or to ask any questions. Here are some changes in the time:

Wed., Sept. 12: First meeting @ 7:30pm in L118 (the classroom next to the pool)
Fri., Sept. 14: First practice @ 8-9pm

Remember if you want this body or want to avoid freshmen 15, join water polo! See you then! 🙂

The first game of the day is Yale v Middlebury! It looks like its going to be a really close game here, the current score is tied as we go into the last quarter!

Yale is seeded first in the division, Middlebury fifth.

Here is the play by play of the final quarter of the first championship game:

Time out called by Middlebury

Number 16 on Yale just made a goal bringing the score to 10 -9 Yale.

Number 2 on Yale just made a goal bringing the score to 11-9- Yale.

A shot by Middlebury, but no goal.

Another goal by Yale, making the score 12-9.

Yale is really picking it up here- another goal by 21.

Middlebury called a timeout, with 4:40 left in the game and a score of 9-13.

Goal by number 2 of Yale the score is now 14-9, Yale.

Number 2 of Middlebury just got ejected, Yale called a timeout but no goal on the 6 on 5.

Goal by number 5 of Yale.

Number 4 of Middlebury scores bringing the game to 15-10- Yale.

Another Middlebury ejection, but no goal on the man-down.

A beautiful goal by number 5 of Yale, in what was almost a one on one with the Middlebury goalie.

A block of the left hand goal corner by Yale, a quick turnover and another block of the top right goal corner by the Middlebury goalie.

20 seconds left in the game!

The final score is: 16-10, Yale.