Women's Water Polo Goes 2-2 in West Coast Trip
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - The Austin College women's water polo team got its season off to a strong start in California over the weekend, going 2-2 with wins over Division II opponent Fresno Pacific as well as Chapman, who entered the weekend ranked No. 5 in Division III.
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - The Austin College women's water polo team got its season off to a strong start in California over the weekend, going 2-2 with wins over Division II opponent Fresno Pacific as well as Chapman, who entered the weekend ranked No. 5 in Division III.
The 'Roos opened the weekend against host school Pacific Lutheran, ranked No. 2 in Division III, falling 9-8 on a goal with just 12 seconds left. The 'Roos led 8-7 with just over two minutes left, but Pacific Lutheran found the net twice in the closing minutes to hand Austin College the defeat. The 'Roos led most of the way, pushing the margin to two goals three times during the game. Sophie Oliver, Brooke Le, and Lexi Wong each tallied twice in the loss, while Alyssa Ross and Madison Taylor each added a goal.
Austin College rebounded with the program's third win over a Division II team in program history, topping Fresno Pacific by a score of 10-9. Taylor had a big game for the 'Roos, finishing with four goals to lead the way, with Wong also tallying twice. Oliver, Le, and Presley Woods also found the net, and Kalissa Niles scored the first goal of her collegiate career in the victory. Valery Piachonkina had eight blocks in goal for the 'Roos.
On Saturday morning the 'Roos dropped an 18-5 game against Long Island University, ranked No. 22 in Division I, before closing out the trip with a big win over No. 5-ranked Chapman. Wong and Oliver came up huge offensively for Austin College, with both seniors finding the back of the cage six times in the win. Piachonkina had another stellar game between the pipes, coming up with 13 blocks to help the 'Roos, who entered the weekend ranked No. 8 in Division III, pull off the upset victory.