Women's Water Polo | 7/15/2016 12:53:00 PM

ONEONTA, NY – Former Hartwick College water polo stars Bronwen Knox and Marina Zablith each will compete in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil later this summer. Knox, who will be competing at her third Olympic Games, will captain the Australian Team. Zablith will play for the Brazilian Team. Competition begins on August 9.
           
Australia and Brazil were drawn in the same group and will clash in their final preliminary game on August 13. Australia opposes Russia with Brazil facing Italy to open play on August 9. The two squads flip opponents on August 11 before meeting two days later. The knockout stage begins August 15.
           
Knox is the only player in the history of Hartwick water polo to earn All-America Second Team honors from the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC). She helped guide the Hawks to a record of 56-20, two CWPA Northern Division titles, a CWPA Eastern crown, and a sixth-place finish at the 2006 NCAA Division I Championships.
           
Following her freshman campaign, she was the CWPA Northern and Eastern Championships Rookie of the Year, a CWPA Northern and Eastern First Team selection, and was an AWPCA Honorable Mention All-American. She led the country in scoring with 127 tallies and was later named Most Valuable Player of both the Northern Division and Eastern Championships in 2006. She also earned AWPCA All-Academic team honors and received All-America Second Team accolades.
           
The 2012 Hartwick College Athletics Hall of Fame inductee still ranks sixth in career steals (209) and seventh in career goals (229) in the Hartwick record books despite only playing two seasons. Her 117 steals in 2006 remains the all-time program single-season high with her 127 goals ranking second.
           
In the summer of 2012, Knox tallied four goals to help Australia to a bronze medal at the London Olympics. She also aided in securing her country a bronze in Beijing in 2008 after registering 12 tallies.
           
Zablith, a Sao Paulo, Brazil native, suited up for the Hawks as a defender in 2007. She helped 'Wick to a program-record 32 wins over the course of the season. Hartwick won the CWPA Northern Division title, the CWPA Eastern Championship, and earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
           
In the national tournament, Zablith helped the Hawks to victories over Pomona-Pitzer and Loyola Marymount for a fifth-place finish. It marked the program's second-highest showing at the NCAA's.
           
Zablith registered 23 goals and 17 assists in 41 games for Hartwick. She added 13 steals and six drawn kick-outs.