As 250,000 people gravitated to Harvard Square this weekend, the Harvard men's water polo team escaped to the West.

On the agenda: take in some sun and compete against some of the best teams in the country.

Harvard (9-18, 4-6 CWPA) came away with two wins and three losses.

"We should have done better," said sophomore goalie Josh Bliesath.

This seems to be the recurring theme of a frustrating year for the Crimson.

Although Harvard did emerge with an overall positive feeling from the weekend, the team suffered yet again from inconsistent performance.

There were great moments and hard-fought victories, but there were also times of lackadaisical and disappointing play.

"It seemed as if we fielded two teams," Bliesath said. "When we came out ready to play, we won. At other times, it was as if we didn't even show up."

After encountering the same New England teams over and over, Harvard decided to find fresh blood.

California, the hub of water polo in the United States, provided Harvard with exactly what it has been seeking--fresh faces on the opposing teams and great competition.

On Friday, the Crimson battled Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, only to fall short with a 9-5 loss.

However, the team emerged with a strong defensive effort Saturday morning to edge out La Verne, 9-8.

"We never absolutely killed them," senior Chris Tilghman said. "But we held stable all the way."

Riding this wave of momentum, Harvard continued its winning ways by destroying Chapman, 11-6, later Saturday morning.

"People were just really on," Tilghman said.