Bucknell University

PROVIDENCE, R.I.– Bucknell women’s water polo (15-12) stunned No. 20 Brown (16-14), 7-6, in the opening round of the CWPA Championships on Friday night. The fifth-seeded Bison faced the fourth-seeded Bears in Brown’s home waters but prevailed when Olivia Hopper scored the winning goal with 23 seconds left and goalkeeper Tamara Toskos blocked two shots with ten seconds remaining. 

Bucknell improved to 6-0 in one-goal games this season. It was the Bison’s first ranked win since 2020. 

The game was a defensive affair with neither team yielding easy shots. Olivia Hopper, recently named Second Team All-CWPA, broke Brown’s defensive ranks with a game-high five goals. 

Bucknell jumped to a 2-0 lead when Bella Schraa and Gwen Kallmeyer each tallied a goal. Those would be the final non-Olivia Hopper goals scored by the Bison. Brown rallied and tied the game at 2-2 as the first quarter closed. 

Brown seized its first lead in the second quarter before Hopper tied the game at 3-3. The Bears scored again for the 4-3 halftime advantage. 

The Bison regained the lead after halftime when Hopper scored two goals for the 5-4 lead. Brown again responded, tying the game at 5-5 entering the final stanza. 

Hopper struck again for the 6-5 lead. The Bison defense held for nearly five minutes before Brown converted a penalty shot with 31 seconds remaining. Hopper remained undaunted and delivered a long range goal. The Bears attempted to tie and got two great looks but Toskos swatted away both attempts. The jubilant Bison celebrated on the sidelines and in the water. 

Bucknell will face first-seeded Princeton tomorrow at 1 p.m.