Women's water polo has traditionally lacked the following of other sports at Harvard. If asked about the team, many fans would probably wonder how exactly they get the horses in and out of the water.

This weekend, the women's water polo team continued to prove that the non-believers are missing out on something exciting.

The No. 18 Crimson (3-4) continued its gradual rise to prominence this weekend, going 2-1 in the New England Invitational at Brown University this weekend.

"We've come a long way in the last few years," tri-captain Kit Hodge said. "This weekend definitely showed that."

The weekend began with an 8-2 win over Queens College. Natasha Magnuson's sharp outside shooting keyed the victory for the Crimson in a game that was never very close.

The team went on to face perennial eastern power UMass (5-1) in a game that many on the team considered a measuring stick. The No. 12 Minutewomen, two-time defending Eastern champions, had defeated the Crimson 9-3 at the Princeton Invitational a week earlier and had been 11-3 all-time against Harvard.

Early on, the Crimson seemed ready to reverse that trend. Early goals by junior Jess Gunderson, who along with Magnuson played the entire game, helped the Crimson jump out to a 3-2 lead in the first quarter.

However, the Minutewomen rebounded in the second quarter to exit the half tied with the Crimson at four goals apiece. Then, they exploded for five unanswered goals in the third quarter. The Crimson ended up losing, 12-5.