Bucknell Women's Water Polo Earns At-Large Berth to Eastern Championship - BUCKNELL UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE

Bucknell Women's Water Polo Earns At-Large Berth to Eastern Championship

Bison are Sixth Seed in Eight-Team Field

Kandis Canonica owns the Bucknell record with 119 points this season.

April 20, 2009

LEWISBURG, Pa. – Despite a fourth-place finish at this past weekend’s Southern Championships, the Bucknell women’s water polo team earned an at-large berth to the Eastern Championship, which will be held this weekend at Harvard. The Bison, who will be competing at the Eastern Championship for the eighth straight year, are the sixth seed in the eight-team field.

Bucknell (18-14) will open up the Eastern Championship Friday at 4:30 p.m. against conference rival Maryland (14-12), which won the Southern Championships and is the No. 3 seed. The Bison and Terps tied for the Southern Division regular-season title and split a pair of contests with each team winning in its home pool. The winner would face either Michigan or Princeton in Saturday’s semifinal.

The winner of the Eastern Championship earns an automatic berth to the NCAA Championship, which will take place at Maryland May 8-10. The Eastern Championship field is comprised of the top two finishers at the Southern Championships, Northern Championships and Western Championships. Two additional at-large selections were added to complete the tournament listing.

Bucknell finished sixth at last year’s Eastern Championship, the second-best showing in program history. The Bison’s best finish came in 2006 when they claimed fourth after upsetting No. 18 Indiana in the first round.

Bucknell, which posted an eight-game winning streak near the conclusion of the regular season, enters the Eastern Championship two wins shy of its fourth 20-win campaign in the last five years. The Bison will play three games at the Eastern Championship as consolation rounds are contested to decide each of the eight places.

Hartwick and Michigan are the top two seeds in the field, followed by Maryland, Indiana, Brown, Bucknell, Princeton and host Harvard. Four of the teams were ranked in the latest national top-20 poll.

Eastern Championship Seeding
1. Hartwick
2. Michigan
3. Maryland
4. Indiana
5. Brown
6. Bucknell
7. Princeton
8. Harvard

Eastern Championship Schedule
Friday, April 24
Game 1: Harvard vs. Hartwick, 12 p.m.
Game 2: Indiana vs. Brown, 1:30 p.m.
Game 3: Michigan vs. Princeton, 3 p.m.
Game 4: Maryland vs. Bucknell, 4:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 25
Game 5: Loser Game 2 vs. Loser Game 1, 1 p.m.
Game 6: Loser Game 4 vs. Loser Game 3, 2:30 p.m.
Game 7: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 4 p.m.
Game 8: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 5:30 p.m.

Sunday, April 26
Seventh Place: Loser Game 6 vs. Loser Game 5, 10 a.m.
Fifth Place: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 11:30 a.m.
Third Place: Loser Game 8 vs. Loser Game 7, 1 p.m.
First Place: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 2:30 p.m.