Recent News

Come join us to meet the team and our coach! We will go over what a typical practice is like, our normal schedule, balancing school, etc…
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009 @ 8:30 pm
Rolfs Aquatic Center (in classroom located on the South side of the pool deck)
Please bring with you a completed consent form with your insurance information (must be turned in by Friday in order to start practice on Monday, September 7th).

May 4, 2009

The Notre Dame Women’s Water Polo team traveled to Davis, California this weekend to play in the National Collegiate Club Water Polo Championship. The Irish faced their first opponent Friday night in the pouring rain: University of Central Florida. The Irish led 2-0 at the end of the first period, 7-0 at halftime and 11-0 with 2:17 left in the third period to finish with an 11-3 win. All 19 members of the team saw playing time. Senior, Kelly Horner scored 5 goals and earned Player of the Game. Also scoring for the Irish were Cristina Romano with two, Kat Kennifer, and Emily Harig with three. Betsy O’Neill defended goal for the first three quarters with eight saves and Maggie Hyde closed out the win in the fourth quarter.

Saturday morning the Irish met the home team, University of California, Davis, for the quarter-final game in the rain. The Irish let Davis score two quick unanswered goals in the first quarter to make the score 2-0 for the first half. It was not until the third quarter that Kelly Horner scored one for the Irish and then added two more in the fourth quarter to take the win 3-2, and earning herself another Player of the Game title. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with seven saves as the Irish advanced themselves to the semi-finals.

In the last game of the day, the Irish matched up against the University of Oregon Ducks. Ali Durkin scored three goals and earned Player of the Game. Also scoring for the Irish were the other five starters: Kristen Harchut, Kat Kennifer, Emily Harig, Kelly Horner and Cristina Romano. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with six saves to secure the 8-1 win and a place in the title game Sunday morning.

Back at the pool on Sunday, the Irish were set to face number one ranked, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the National Championship game. Poly came out hard with three quick goals in the first quarter and Kelly Horner scored one for the Irish to make it 3-1 after the first. The Irish did not give up hope and Kelly Horner answered in the second quarter with two more goals and the Irish won the quarter 2-1 to make the score 4-3 at half. Poly came back in the third quarter with two more goals and Kelly Horner added another to make it 6-4 after the third. The fourth quarter was scoreless as both teams played tough defense. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with five saves and although the Irish could not pull through with the win, the second place finish was still an amazing accomplishment and a great finish to a strong season.

In other awards for the weekend, Coach Brian Coughlin earned Coach of the Year and four players earned All-Tournament team honors. Cristina Romano and Kat Kennifer both earned second team awards and two-meter, Kelly Horner and goalie, Betsy O’Neill both earned first team awards.

April 29,2009

The Irish are currently in Davis, CA playing in the Club Nationals Tournament. Results will be posted sometime next week! Go Irish!

April 21, 2009

Kelly Horner was announced this week's Midwest Player of the Week!

April 20, 2009

This weekend the Irish traveled to Athens, Ohio to compete in the Midwest Conference Championships at Ohio University. In the first game of the weekend, the Irish faced Washington University of Missouri. Scoring for the Irish were Cristina Romano with two, Maisie O’Malley, Eileen Flanagan, Meghan Pearl, Ali Durkin with two, Colleen Middleton with two, Erin Gibson with two, Kelly Horner, Danielle Guidry and Kelly Gibson with two. Defending goal and anchoring the defense was Maggie Hyde with two saves to make the final score 15-2.

Later in the day, the Irish faced the home team, Ohio University. Coming out on the attack, Cristina Romano and Ali Durkin each scored three goals in the first quarter, Kat Kennifer added two and Maisie O’Malley added one to make the first quarter score 9-1. Also scoring for the Irish were Kristen Harchut, Liz Casazza, Erin Gibson, Kelly Horner and Melissa Wagner with one apiece. Betsy O’Neill had 8 saves and Maggie Hyde had 5 to clinch the 15-3 win.

After winning the first two games, the Irish advanced to the first place game to cross over with Grand Valley State University. The Lakers came out hard, scoring the first goal and the Irish only were winning by one at half, 4-3. In the third quarter, the Irish outscored the Lakers 7-1 and finished with the win 13-6. Scoring for the Irish were Cristina Romano, Kat Kennifer, Kristen Harchut with two, Ali Durkin, Emily Harig, and Kelly Horner with seven. Ali Durkin dominated the defense with 5 steals, and Betsy O’Neill defended three quarters with 6 saves and Maggie Hyde finished it off with another save. The Irish finished first place in the Midwest Conference, earning them a ticket to Nationals in Davis, California the first weekend in May.

April 16, 2009

Senior, Kelly Horner was featured in her hometown newspaper, The Holland Sentinel.

April 6, 2009

Seniors, Kat Kennifer and Kristen Harchut earn this week's Midwest Conference Co-Players of the Week!

April 5, 2009

The Irish took a trip to Ann Arbor this weekend to play another four games. Saturday started off with a game against Michigan State University. Kelly Horner scored five goals, Ali Durkin scored three and Kat Kennifer added one to make the win 9-5. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with 13 saves.

Later in the day, the Irish were back in the pool against Grand Valley State University. Scoring for the Notre Dame were Cristina Romano with four, Kat Kennifer with three, Kelly Horner with three and Kristen harchut, Maisie O’Malley, Ali Durkin and Emily Harig with one each. Ali Durkin led the defense with five steals. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with nine saves to finish the Lakers with a 14-5 win.

Sunday morning the Irish women were faced with Eastern Michigan University. Twelve players scored one each for the Irish: Betsy O’Neill, Cristina Romano, Kat Kennifer, Kristen Harchut, Meghan Pearl, Ali Durkin, Kasia Ahern, Colleen Middleton, Emily Harig, Erin Gibson, Danielle Guidry, and Kelly Gibson. Maggie Hyde kept goal with five saves to secure the 12-5 win.

In the last game of the weekend, the Irish were challenged by the home team, University of Michigan. The Wolverines came out hard and after first quarter were up 5-2, but the Irish did not let up. In the second quarter, Notre Dame came back with five goals to be up 7-6 at the half. Continuing to keep the pressure on, the Irish scored two more in the third to make it 9-7, and another two in the fourth to make the win 11-7. Senior, Kelly Horner scored five goals, junior, Cristina Romano added three and senior, Kat Kennifer had three. Betsy O’Neill played goalie with 15 saves and Cristina Romano led the defense with four steals.

March 30, 2009

This weekend the Irish traveled to Oxford, Ohio to play in the Miami of Ohio University Invitational. Eight of the top 12 teams in the country were present for a weekend of many intense games. Friday night the Irish faced Grand Valley State University’s “B” team. Cristina Romano scored three for the Irish, Kat Kennifer, and Kasia Ahern each added two. Also scoring for the Irish were Kristen Harchut, Meghan Pearl, Alison Schilling, Colleen Middleton, Emily Harig and Erin Gibson. Maggie Hyde anchored the Irish defense in goal with five saves to make the win 13-4.

Saturday morning the Irish were back at the pool to face Michigan State. Cristina Romano, Maisie O’Malley, and Ali Durkin each had one goal. Emily Harig added three and Kelly Horner added two. Betsy O’Neill played goal with 20 saves to secure the win 8-2.

Later in the day, the Irish played University of Michigan in a tough game. The Irish were up 4-2 at half, with three goals from Kelly Horner and one from Emily Harig. However, Michigan did not let up, and scored the next 3 goals to make it 5-4 at the end of the third. In the fourth quarter, Emily Harig scored to tie the game, and on the next possession down the pool, Kat Kennifer finished it with another goal to take the lead. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with 9 saves and the Irish finished with a 6-5 win.

Saturday night Cal Poly (number 2) upset the number 1 ranked team, UCLA to make it to the finals where they met the Irish Sunday morning. The Irish were up 3-2 after the first, thanks to two goals from Kelly Horner and one from Cristina Romano. Both teams continued to push and Kelly Horner scored three more goals and Kat Kennifer scored one. Betsy O’Neill kept goal with 10 saves, but it was not enough to stop Cal Poly from winning 11-7.

March 26, 2009

Goalies Betsy O'Neill and Maggie Hyde were named Midwest Division Co-Players of the Week!

March 23, 2009

The Fighting Irish hosted a mini-tournament this Saturday at Rolf’s Aquatic Center, hosting varsity programs, Carthage College and Wheaton college, as well as Eastern Michigan University’s club team. In the morning the Irish matched up against Carthage College in the first game of the day. Starting it off, Kelly Horner scored 4 goals in the first quarter. Also adding one for the Irish were Emily Harig, Ali Durkin, Meghan Pearl, Eileen Flanagan, Kristen Harchut and Kat Kennifer. Betsy O’Neill kept goal with 18 saves, including one on a 5-Meter penalty shot. The Irish secured the win, 10-4.

In their next game, the Irish faced Easter Michigan University. The Irish put forth a strong team effort as 15 different people scored one goal each to make the win 15-1. Scoring for the Irish were Cristina Romano, Kristen Harchut, Maisie O’Malley, Eileen Flanagan, Meghan Pearl, Alison Schilling, Ali Durkin, Kasia Ahern, Colleen Middleton, Erin Hallagan, Erin Gibson, Kelly Gibson, Danielle Guidry, Caroline Braunstein, and Liz Casazza. Holding together the defense, Maggie Hyde defended goal with 8 saves to finish with the win.

Finishing off the tournament, the Irish played their last home game of the season against Wheaton College. Kelly Horner put in 5 goals, Cristina Romano added 3, Maisie O’Malley put in 2 and Ali Durkin added one to make the final score 11-5. Betsy O’Neill played the first half in goal with 9 saves and Maggie Hyde finished the game with 4 saves.

March 18, 2009

Notre Dame's 2-M, senior, Kelly Horner has been named Midwest Divison Player of the Week!

March 16, 2009

The Irish Women’s water polo team returned from a successful spring break trip travel trip this week. They started off the weekend, playing Wheaton, just outside Chicago on Friday night. The Irish started it off right with one goal each from Maisie O’Malley and Ali Durkin. Cristina Romano, Kat Kennifer, Eileen Flanagan and Erin Gibson each added two apiece and Kelly Horner had 5 goals. Maggie Hyde defended the goal with 5 saves. The Irish won 15-8.

Next they traveled to San Bernardino, California, to play Cal State University San Bernardino, a varsity team. Scoring goals for the Irish were Kristen Harchut, Maisie O’Malley, Cristina Romano with one each and Kelly Horner adding in two. Betsy O’Neill played goal and had 11 saves, however, the Irish were unable to pull through and lost 12-5.

On Monday, the Irish went to UCLA to play the Bruins in a night scrimmage.
Tuesday, the Notre Dame women traveled to Azusa Pacific University to play their varsity team. Kelly Horner had 4 goals, Emily Harig threw in 2, and Maisie O’Malley, Eileen Flanagan, and Cristina Romano each added one. Betsy O’Neill defended goal with 9 saves to make the win 9-3.
Wednesday, the Irish drove up the coast to San Luis Obispo to play Cal Poly in a scrimmage.

From San Luis Obispo, the Irish traveled further north to Monterey to play the Cal State University Monterey Bay Otters. Scoring for the Irish, Kat Kennifer, Maisie O’Malley and Ali Durkin each had one and Kelly Horner added 4. Betsy O’Neill played goal with 6 saves but it was not enough, and the Irish lost 8-7.

Next the Irish started off a tournament at Foothill College on Saturday, playing the Number 1 ranked, University of Oregon. The Irish came out hard, and Cristina Romano, Ali Durkin and Emily Harig each scored one goal. Kat Kennifer and Kelly Horner each added two. Betsy O’Neill played goal with 7 saves to secure the 7-5 win.

The next game of the day was against Cal Maritime. Kelly Horner, Kasia Ahern, Meghan Pearl, Maisie O’Malley, and Kristen Harchut each threw in one goal. Ali Durkin added two and Cristina Romano had a hat trick with 3 more goals. Betsy O’Neill played goal and added 4 saves to beat Maritime 10-1.

Early Sunday morning the Irish faced off against Foothill College in the semi-finals of the tournament. Cristina Romano heated things up scoring 4 goals early in the game and Kelly Horner added two. Kat Kennifer also scored one. Betsy O’Neill played in goal with 3 saves and the Irish pulled through to win it 7-4.

In the final game of the tournament and of spring break, the Irish matched up against Cal Poly in a tough final game. Kelly Horner scored two goals and Maisie O’Malley scored one. Betsy O’Neill played goal with 4 saves, but it was not enough to defeat Poly and the Irish fell short with a final score of 5-3.

March 1, 2009

The Notre Dame women’s water polo team hosted their own Irish Invitational, this weekend, at Rolfs Aquatic Center. In their first game Friday night, the 5th ranked Irish faced number 8, Michigan State University for the first time this season. Junior, Cristina Romano and senior, Kelly Horner each scored 3 goals and sophomore, Ali Durkin added 2 to the 8-3 win. Junior, Betsy O’Neill defended the goal and made 23 saves.

Back at the pool on Saturday, the Irish faced Penn State in their next game. Kat Kennifer scored 3 goals. Cristina Romano, Maisie O’Malley, and Kelly Horner all had 2 apiece. Kristen Harchut, Eileen Flanagan, Meghan Pearl, Alison Schilling, Ali Durkin, and Emily Harig each added one. In goal, Betsy O’Neill had 9 saves and Maggie Hyde had 3 to make the final scored 15-6.

Saturday night the Irish played Lindenwood University from Missouri. Scoring for the Irish were Cristina Romano, Maisie O’Malley, Eileen Flanagan, Erin Gibson and Kelly Horner. Emily Harig and Kasia Ahern each added 2. Senior, Maggie Hyde defended goal with 13 solid blocks and led the defense to a 9-3 win.

In their last game of the weekend, the Irish finished the tournament with a 7-4 win over the 10th ranked, University of Illinois. Cristina Romano had 3 goals, Kelly Horner had 2 and Meghan Pearl and Maisie O’Malley each added one. Betsy O’Neill played in goal and had 10 saves.

February 9, 2009

Junior goalie, Betsy O'Neill has been named Midwest Divison Player of the Week!

February 8, 2009

The Irish began the weekend with a 9-2 victory over Ohio State. Scoring two apiece were starters Ali Durkin and Kat Kennifer. Cristina Romano, Eileen Flanagan, Emily Harig, Kelly Horner, and Erin Gibson each scored one goal to add to the win. In goal, Betsy O’Neill had five saves and Maggie Hyde finished off the Buckeyes, adding two saves.

In the second game of the day, the Irish defeated Spartan Water Polo Zone Team. Senior Kelly Horner started it off right with three goals in the first quarter and continued with a fourth goal in the third quarter. Kat Kennifer, Kristen Harchut, Maisie O’Malley and Ali Durkin all scored one goal to make the final score 8-4. Cristina Romano led the Irish defense with 4 steals and Betsy O’Neill had 13 saves in goal.

Next the Irish faced Green Wave, the Michigan State Alumni team, with a 7-6 win. Cristina Romano and Kat Kennifer each contributed two goals. Ali Durkin, Emily Harig, and Kelly Horner each scored one goal. Kristen Harchut led the team in steals with 7 and Betsy O’Neill defended the goal with 11 saves.

Early Sunday morning the Irish were back in the pool for the final game of the tournament to face the University of Michigan. The Irish were down by one at half, their only goal thanks to Kelly Horner’s five meter shot. Michigan scored the first goal of the second half, making it 3-1. Ali Durkin scored a crucial two goals. At the very last minute, Emily Harig sprinted up the pool with a fast break away, while Horner and Romano finished it off. Betsy O’Neill was in goal with a total of 11 saves.

February 2 , 2009

Junior driver, Cristina Romano has been named Midwest Division Player of the Week!

January 31, February 1, 2009

The Irish women’s water polo team sprinted into their season with their CWPA Midwest regional tournament at Grand Valley State University. They started off the weekend with their first game against Miami of Ohio, winning 10-4. Clearly fired up for a new season, returners Cristina Romano and Kelly Horner scored six and four goals respectively. Senior Kristen Harchut led the defense with six steals. Betsy O’Neill played goal and had seven saves.

Next the Irish matched up against the host team, Grand Valley State, in a 5-3 victory. Senior Kelly Horner scored two goals. One of the newest members of the team, freshman Maisie O’Malley stepped up and scored three goals in the second half. Cristina Romano led in steals with eight and Betsy O’Neill had seven saves in goal.

In the third game of the day, the Irish defeated Ohio University 15-5. New addition to the team, Eileen Flanagan, led the scoring with four goals. Cristina Romano followed with three. Also, Kat Kennifer, Maisie O’Malley, Ali Durkin, Kasia Ahern, Colleen Middleton, Liz Casazza, Erin Hallagan and Kelly Gibson all scored one goal. Sharing the goal, Betsy O’Neill had 3 saves and Maggie Hyde had 4 saves.

The Irish secured the number one seed in the Midwest Regional tournament in April by winning their last game against Washington University 13-0. Senior goalkeeper, Maggie Hyde, had a shutout with six saves. In the first quarter, all six starters, Cristina Romano, Kat Kennifer, Kristen Harchut, Ali Durkin, Emily Harig and Kelly Horner scored one goal each. Sophomore Eileen Flanagan scored two goals. Juniors Ali Schilling and Meghan Pearl, and freshmen Maisie O’Malley, Colleen Middleton, and Erin Gibson each scored one goal. Kristen Harchut led the defense with six steals.

January 20, 2009

The Notre Dame women's water polo team hs been featured in RecSports Magazine as the "fiercest competitors on campus"!