Indiana women’s water polo got four wins from four games to start the season as it hosted the 2025 Indiana Classic at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center in Bloomington this weekend.
The No. 11 Hoosiers started the season-opening tournament by facing off against No. 16 California State University-Northridge and Salem University on Saturday.
The Hoosiers started off hot against CSUN, quickly jumping out to a 5-0 lead late in the first quarter, thanks in large part to three straight goals from senior attacker Skylar Kidd. A strong push through the second quarter, including two goals from senior center Sophia Sollie, saw the Hoosiers leading 11-5 at halftime.
Despite a late CSUN push with five goals scored in the third quarter, the Hoosiers netted five straight to close the game and win their first game of the tournament, 19-10.
The Hoosiers started in dominating fashion in the following match against Salem, with Kidd having a four-goal first quarter as Indiana led 6-0 heading into the second quarter. Salem would score their first goal after being down 8-0, with the halftime score reading 11-2.
The second half was the same story, with senior defender Claire Witting scoring three goals en route to a resounding 20-6 win to wrap up the first day of matches.
The following day, the Hoosiers wrapped up their tournament games by facing No. 18 University of California-Santa Barbara and McKendree University on Sunday.
The first game against UCSB went back and forth from start to finish, as the Gauchos opened the scoring inside the first minute. After the Hoosiers scored four of the next five goals, UCSB scored the final goal of the first half, ending 4-3 in favor of Indiana at the break.
The Hoosiers started the second half strong, with seniors Kidd, Witting and attacker Grace Hathaway combining for three straight goals. However, after leading 9-5 with six minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Gauchos rallied, scoring four straight to tie the match at 9-9 with 36 seconds left.
Needing a late moment of magic, junior utility player Nicole Tyner delivered, scoring a dramatic winning goal with 10 seconds left as the Hoosiers escaped with a 10-9 victory.
The second match of the day versus McKendree was much more straightforward. The Hoosiers led 6-0 after the first quarter, with Kidd scoring at least three goals in the first quarter for the third time in four games. Indiana scored another before McKendree got on the board, with the Hoosiers leading 10-1 at halftime.
The Hoosiers were in cruise control for a majority of the second half, conceding only twice as they held the Bearcats to an emphatic 13-3 victory, wrapping up a very successful tournament performance on home soil.
Indiana's next match will be at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 31, visiting Marist College in Providence, Rhode Island.
