"Basically, we got crushed because we just didn't play like we cared," Hodge said. "Knowing that we could have played them better, as we would prove later, those losses really brought team morale to a all-time low."

The following weekend brought more tough times, when several members of the team endured injuries and stinging eyes from a chemically imbalanced pool at Northerns. The strength of the chlorine had disabled the Harvard players' ability to see during the game.

However, despite these trying events, Harvard maintained its togetherness.

"Our team has always been remarkable for its internal cohesion," Hodge said. "In the past, we've had difficulty translating this into solid team performance in the water. However, one of the best things to come out of this year was the development of just that."

"We were all happily surprised at how much we had improved our team dynamic at Easterns," Hodge added. "It made a tremendous difference and proved quite successful."

The team had also overcome the adjustment that comes with a head coaching change during mid-season. The assistant coach Rick Handt took over the reigns from Sachi Gahan in late March and led the team to a strong finish.

"The team bonded so much in the middle of the season and that was extremely evident in our play at the end of the season," sophomore Natasha Magnuson said. "We were able to focus on polo a lot more towards the end of the season."