Finally Home

In the midst of a season long road trip, the Indiana Invitational will be warmly welcomed, a brief, homestand for the IU water polo team.\n"It is very fun to play in our own pool and in front of our own crowd," senior All-American Kristin Stanford said. "Everybody is getting really excited, a lot of our families are coming to cheer us on." The friendly confines of the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatics Center will be a comforting change of pace from the normal road venues the Hoosiers are accustomed to. Although IU has been on the road all season, the team is coming off an impressive 4-0 weekend at the Princeton Invitational, after which it received a No. 12 national ranking, its highest ever. Those wins improved their overall record to 7-4. \nAll four of the Hoosiers' losses this year were to opponents ranked above them in the national polls, including a loss to No. 1 Stanford. The Hoosiers were in a tie with the University of California, Santa Barbara at No. 12. But, after not playing for a weekend, the team dropped to No. 14. \nCoach Barry King said he hopes the team is concentrating on playing and not on the national rankings.\n"Hopefully nobody is aware of our ranking, but we usually accept the responsibility of the rankings well," King said. "Even if we are ranked below a team we continue to battle and fight." \nAlthough the Hoosiers struggled at the Indiana Invitational last year, they did end the year with a 5-3 record at home. In particular, senior two-meter Kristin Stanford is ready to play in her final game at IU. \n"This game should be competitive and fun; it is a different atmosphere to play in at home," Stanford said. \nAlthough the Hoosiers did not play particularly well last year at the Indiana Invitational as a team, losing to Princeton and Michigan, Stanford still had a standout performance. The All-American had three goals on eight shots in the Princeton game. \nIn a close overtime game with Michigan, Stanford had three goals and two steals. This year, Stanford said she is determined not to let her team lose and is confident she can end her Hoosier career at home with an Indiana Invitational victory. \n"We really want to beat Hartwick, and with the things we have been doing in practice I think we can," she said. \nStanford, who is also captain, has twice been named the Collegiate Water Polo Association's player of the week this year. \nFreshman Courtney Livak said she thinks the Hoosiers can beat Hartwick and win Stanford's last home game because of the drills they have been practicing. \n"We have been working a lot to counter Hartwick's defense, and get our offense in gear," Livak said.\nThis is the only weekend the Hoosiers are at home, and King said he knows the team and especially Stanford can make the most of it. \n"We have a lot more confidence than we did at this time last year," King said. "I think we can definitely go 2-0 on the weekend"