Harvard's water polo team will dive into the depths of its first varsity season tonight at Blodgett Pool, trying to out-amphibian the University of New Hampshire starting at 7 p.m.

The Crimson squad, which until this year competed only on the club level, will have its first taste of a varsity level II schedule that includes perennial powers UCLA, Air Force and Brown.

Although tonight's game will mark the team's varsity debut, first-year-coach Stephen Pike is not thirsting for experienced athletes. Only two of the squad's starters graduated after last year's 10-7 season.

Co-captains John Hansen and Juan Enriquez, both of whom were instrumental in raising the team to varsity status, are seasoned club competitors. Junior Houston Hall and Californians Phil Atkinson and Rich Guerra, both sophomores, will add strength to the starting line-up.

Pike and company say the increased competition may prevent the team from improving last year's record, but the season will provide the team with an opportunity for higher education, Hansen says. The tougher schedule also "puts us on the first step to parity" with top teams, Pike said earlier this week. "Now it's up to us."

The outcome of tonight's game will provide the team with some indication of just how far the squad has to rise before they can dunk Eastern rivals MIT and Brown.