LOUDONVILLE, NY – With the 2022 calendar coming to a close, Siena water Polo will have much to look forward to in the new year. Head Coach Alex Williams announced a challenging 28-match slate for the team's 2023 schedule, which includes action against nationally-recognized programs.
"We're very proud of the schedule for 2023 which takes us to come of the nation's elite institutions on both the east and west coasts," Williams said. "We're very grateful for the support from our department to deliver a very competitive schedule and experience for our student-athletes."
Equipped with two returning All-Conference selections, nine newcomers, and new assistant coach Kaylee Kastrup, the Saints will look to build off a 4-25 record from last season. The 2023 slate includes three home matches at the Siena Swim Center as part of the MAAC's return to round-robin conference weekends. Additionally, the league announced an expanded postseason field of six teams beginning this season at the start of the 2022-23 academic year. Siena will aim to clinch a postseason berth for the first time since 2010.
The 22nd varsity season of Siena Water Polo will commence when the team heads to the Bruno Classic in Providence, Rhode Island from February 3-4. The Saints will face regional foes Gannon and Brown, while taking on California-based Pomona-Pitzer for the first time since 2012, and facing Santa Clara for the second straight year.
Siena will then head to the Princeton Invitational in New Jersey from Feb. 25-26 to face Bucknell, Chapman, and Princeton, with Chapman returning to the schedule for the first time since 2014. The following weekend will keep the Green and Gold at an Ivy League-based tournament in the form of the Harvard Invitational from March 4-5, with Siena scheduled to face off against CSUN for the first time ever, Brown and Gannon once more, and against Wisconsin-based Carthage College for the first time since 2008.
Siena's final test before entering MAAC competition will come at the Aztec Invitational in San Diego, California from March 10-11, with Siena taking home perennial power San Diego State, Saint Francis (PA), first-time foe UC San Diego, and Princeton. The matchup with UC San Diego will mark the first time that any Siena Athletics program has faced off with the newly-Division I Tritons.
The Saints will enter MAAC play on Sunday, March 19 in Poughkeepsie, New York against Marist and Iona, before hosting weekend conference action. Siena will play host to St. Francis Brooklyn and Marist on Saturday, March 25, at Noon and 4 PM, respectively, at the Siena Swim Center, and will meet new MAAC member Mount St. Mary's for the first time ever on Sunday, March 26 at 1 PM, with that match serving as the team's Senior Day.
Siena will next head to Lexington, Virginia to face MAAC foes La Salle, LIU, and defending MAAC champion Wagner from April 1-2, and will meet Villanova and VMI on April 7 and 8, respectively to continue conference action in Villanova, Pennsylvania. The team's final MAAC weekend will feature the likes of Iona, Mount St. Mary's and St. Francis Brooklyn in New Rochelle, NY from April 15-16.
The 2023 MAAC Women's Water Polo Championships will take place at the McCann Natatorium in Poughkeepsie, with the Opening Round taking place on April 28, the Semifinals on April 29, and the Championship Game on April 30.
