NEW LONDON, Conn. - After falling to Washington and Jefferson in the opening round last night, the Connecticut College women's water polo team responded with two strong wins, defeating Wheaton College 19-3 and Grove City 16-9 on Saturday from Lott Natatorium in CWPA Championship play.

Conn 19, Wheaton 3

Conn rolled in their first game of the day, opening the contest on a 9-0 run and never looking back. In the first quarter, the Camels raced out to a 7-0 lead, as Gigi Sandull (Kenilworth, N.J.) tallied three goals, Emma Luna (Wahiawa, Hawaii) notched two goals, with Sarah Franco (Weston, Conn.) and Ainsley Cornwall (San Mateo, Calif.) both adding one.

Gicel Zuniga (Norwalk, Conn/) and Jada Keen (Kailua-Kona, Hawaii) scored back-to-back goals quickly to make it 9-0 in the second quarter, before Wheaton finally got on the board with 4:37 left. The Camels ended the half with another run, this time 4-0 with goals from Anna Taylor (Pleasanton, Calif.), Kendall Foley (Sammamish, Wash.), Melia Lorch (Encinitas, Calif.), and Keen to lead 13-1 at the break.

Wheaton scored early in the third quarter to make it 13-2, but three straight goals for Conn from Cornwall, Brooke Brandenburger (Sacramento, Calif.), and Foley had the Camels on top 16-2 heading to the fourth. Once again the Lyons opened the scoring in a quarter, this time cutting the deficit to 16-3. Foley, Cornwall, and Zuniga scored for the Camels down the stretch as Conn earned the 19-3 win.

Conn 16, Grove City 9

The first quarter was tightly contested as both teams tallied four goals. Grove City made it 1-0, but Sandull answered quickly to even it up. The Wolverines and Camels traded goals for the rest of the quarter with markers for Conn from Cornwall, Franco, and Taylor had the score tied at four after one.

Conn started the second frame strong, using a 4-0 run to open up an 8-4 lead. During the run, Taylor, Sandull, Brandenburger, and Lorch scored for the Camels. Grove City answered with a marker at 2:37, but Conn pushed the lead back to four on a tally from Franco. The Wolverines got a goal late in the quarter, as the Camels led 9-6 at the break.

Grove City cut the lead to two early in the third quarter, but Conn answered with back-to-back goals from Luna and Sandull to make it 11-7. The Wolverines kept it close with a goal at 1:58, but two late goals from Franco and Sandull had Conn up 13-8 heading to the fourth.

In the final frame, the Camels put the game out of reach with a 3-0 run to open the quarter. Luna recorded her second goal of the contest, while Sandull added two more goals, extending the lead to 16-8. Grove City added a goal in the final minute, but Conn came away with a 16-9 victory.

Conn wraps up the season tomorrow in the fifth-place game of the CWPA Championships, as the Camels take on Carthage College at 10:30 a.m. in Lott Natatorium.