Water polo team headed to Western Divisional championships Friday

With the Collegiate Water Polo Association Western Divisional Championships this weekend, the No. 18 IU team prepares for its sixth consecutive road trip east to Pennsylvania.\nThe women will begin the tournament Friday night against Slippery Rock University with hopes of playing in the championship game Saturday.\nFreshman Kelsey Campbell said this weekend will not be easy, but she is confident her team will leave satisfied.\n“I’m really excited for the next two weekends coming up,” Campbell said. “We’ve been working really hard and I really think we are going to come together as a team and put everything together this weekend.”\nCampbell said it was important to make time for rest even while the team has been practicing its defense and power plays. \n“It was nice to have a bit of a break and regroup and get ready for the next two weekends coming up,” she said.\nIU coach Barry King said that without any specific teams in mind, the Hoosiers have been trying to reinforce some good habits.\n“We’re preparing to play as well as we personally can,” King said. “It’s not for any particular team; we just want to make sure we are practicing the things we have been a little weak on in the past, and trying to reinforce the things we have done well.”\nJunior Maggie Hannon, recent Western Division Player of the Week, said the postseason is when all loose ends must come together.\n“I am hopeful to just get the ball rolling now that it’s the postseason,” Hannon said. “We’ve been a little rocky and we want to be more consistent now ... from the first game Friday to every game until the end.”\nKing said he is proud of Hannon for her recent accomplishments.\n“We are always proud of a player when they have had a collective performance,” he said. “It demonstrates some of the consistency and effort that we want out of Maggie every time she gets in the pool.”\nHannon shared her mixed emotions regarding the importance of this weekend.\n“I’m excited and nervous,” she said. “Excited to be playing again, because as long as things go as planned, we will play Michigan and we really want to redeem our 6-5 loss to them from after spring break.”