It was worth the wait.

A year after coming within a point of qualifying for the NCAAs, the No. 18 Harvard women's water polo team accomplished its goal yesterday. The Crimson assured itself of a spot in this weekend's National Championships by taking third place at the College Water Polo Association Eastern Championships in Princeton.

The Crimson's appearance at Nationals will be its first in seven years.

"This was just a great weekend for the team," Harvard Coach Jim Floerchinger said. "We played stifling defense all weekend long, and were basically able to command other teams."

Although the Crimson was still unable to solve the Minutewomen of UMass in the tournament's semifinal game, Harvard clinched a trip to Indiana University next week with a 9-4 victory over No. 20 Villanova in the decisive third-place game.

No. 9 Princeton defeated No. 13 UMass in the tournament's championship game, and will join the Crimson in representing eastern water polo at the 16-team national tournament.

"We're all really excited about this," tri-captain Angela Munoz said. "Especially the seniors who have been waiting for this for so long. It's been our goal all year, and here we are."

The clinching win was Harvard's second over a ranked Villanova team in two weeks. On April 2nd, the Crimson easily defeated the Wildcats, 9-1, at the ECAC Championship.